The other day, while I was in the checkout line at Walmart, I met a family from Germany. I always get super excited when I meet people from Europe because … Well…I LOVE Europe! I always say I should be French or Spanish or Indian or Canadian or… I love them all!
I went on to tell this gentleman from Germany how I spent time there as a teenager and how much I love it there, how beautiful I think it is, how enchanting all the castles are…and on and on. He looked at me and said, “ yeah, it’s nice, but America is better!”
I immediately stopped talking, thought a moment, and replied, “You are right. I DO love to travel, and I ALWAYS have a great time, and I also always LOVE coming home!” He then said, “sometimes we think the grass is greener…”
Is the grass really greener in places other than where we are? Is the vision or the dream that we have really better than what we have today? Is someone else’s life really better than our own?
Maybe.
It depends on what we are focusing on.
If I focus on the bad things in my life and compare them to all good things in somebody else’s life, I will continue to have ”bad things” in my life, because what I focus on, I find.
In my own life, as I have learned how to focus on all the reasons that I love my life, my reasons for loving my life have been magnified. Sometimes when my reality seems hard or frustrating, I take a moment to sit and close my eyes for a second. After a few deep breaths, I open my eyes again and focus on the first thing I see. I look at all the intricate details until I find beauty in that thing–whatever it is. It doesn’t take very long before I start to feel better.
Does it ever seem to you that the grass is greener in some else’s world than in your own?
Try this with me! Stop what you’re doing right now, and close your eyes.
Now, breathe in for four counts… Hold for four… Breathe out for four… Hold for four…
Ok. Open your eyes. What do you see?
Describe it in detail, either out loud or in a journal.
“The sky is almost completely filled with clouds, and the clouds are so many different colors of Gray. Look! that one over there has a golden lining around it!”
Once you’ve described the details of what you see, then add what you find to be beautiful about it.
Be creative.
Have fun with it!
“The gray sky is beautiful because it is like it’s keeping a secret. It’s hiding a golden surprise. I can’t wait to see what it is!! I love surprises!”
Do you feel kind of excited now? I do!!
Once you have found the beauty in the details of the first thing you focused on, do it again with something else. Keep going until you feel the frustration of comparison start to fade into gratitude.
Life is beautiful. YOUR LIFE is beautiful!!
Did you try it? Share your experience in the comments. I’d love to hear about it!
