All I could think was “Really? Who would want that as a gift?” I can’t help it but that was my internal reaction when my friend’s daughter showed me what she bought her boyfriend for his birthday. I stopped for a moment asking myself why she was so excited about such a trivial gift. She was satisfied with the gift, even though it would never be something most people would consider a gift.
That moment, a resounding truth, slapped me in the face. I seem to have those moments now and then. Occasionally, I mention these internal moments out loud and people stare at me with a ‘why-are-you-telling-me-this?’ face. I blame these judgmental looks for a growing desire to become more introverted.
My other thoughts revolve around my future. One day I want to be a successful writer who can work from home in my inspiring writer’s den, with my dog napping, as I type mysterious worlds to life. I want a top of the line Toyota Tacoma to drive around. I want to pay off my house so I can live without financial worry. I want to afford facial treatments to help reduce my acne and the scars from it. I want, I want, I want. Goals are good because they inspire us, but we still must choose to be content with what we have, as we work towards them.
Google says contentment is a “state of happiness and satisfaction.” Sign me up for that please! So how do we keep ourselves happy and not let the daydreams get out of hand?
As a society, we are enthralled by social media and bombarded with the personal lives of those around us on a daily basis. As we go through our feed, we are not just catching up on what our friends are doing but how well they are doing it. There is a comparison factor to some degree, where we assess how good our lives are compared to theirs. It leads us to have a false reality their lives are somehow better than ours and we find ourselves feeling less than other people. Unfortunately, this is not a new thing; it’s just more prominent now that social media is such a big role in our lives.
With that said, how many people are posting about the crappy parts of their lives? I’m going to go out on a limb here and say very few. Those who usually do are looking for attention to fulfill their emptiness. If that’s not enough, we have a society pushing commercialism on us every single day. The message across the board is “your life could be happier if…”
I’ve met people whose only happiness is dependent on external circumstances. They are always looking for the best house, car, job title and sometimes even a significant other; trading up to find their happiness at the top of the ladder. Have you ever heard the phrase “it’s lonely at the top?” It’s because the reality is, those people will never experience a truly fulfilled life, just momentary satisfaction.
As a side note, if you know a person like this, you may actually be “the next best thing” now and your expiration date is right around the corner so don’t get too attached. If you are a person like this, I’m sorry for whatever it is in your life that’s telling you you’re not good enough.
Tweet: True happiness is only found by making a choice to be content.
The key is to continue choosing to be content on a daily basis to live life to the fullest. If I step back and look at my life, I have a gorgeous home, a car that’s paid off and a dog that loves me. I’ve also been blessed with family and friends who support my crazy goal of one day working from my den. I hope they find contentment with their homemade Christmas gifts this year since I’m still on a budget.
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