Gratitude vs Brag-itude


Good afternoon! I'm so happy to have my little sister Aziza (aka Aunt Zizi) here for a few days. She just got back from 5 weeks at Camp Kahdalea, where I worked 2 summers as a counselor, so we get to bond as Kahdaladies now. Super fun.
Will clearly enjoys the extra attention... he has just started this thing where he wants to put all his toys on display in one place - in this morning's case, my bed. And then Aunt Zizi has to come and listen to him make them all go "beep beep".

I love being able to catch major sleep-deprivation by staying up late chatting on the couch
 with another girl. Yes!!!

I recently came across this article from the WSJ. It was one of those rare reads that you just can't get over how true they are - and it leaves you wondering, why aren't more people talking about this? This is a real phenomenon!... But its also one of those things that you read and you're not 100% positive on how to apply that truth to your own life. 
In the blogosphere/social network, as in real life, I like to be positive and optimistic. I live life trying to count my blessings... trying to avoid "keeping up with the Joneses", or envying other people. I furthermore live my life, having been brought up in the South, believing that you should conduct yourself with dignity, taking a proper pride in the way you tend to your duties and your relationships. You don't air out all your dirty laundry to other people, in the same way that you wouldn't walk into the office or go to Church in a wrinkled t-shirt. It doesn't send a message of respect to others. It doesn't send a message that you respect yourself.
One disrespectful aspect of complaining publicly is that there will always be someone who reads that and is carrying a much, much bigger cross than you are. 
My own child had a sinus infection for the past two weeks, which resulted in a row of exhausting nights dragging myself up the stairs to comfort my snotty-nosed son. 
Big whoop. 
I have a friend whose same-age baby was in the hospital a few months ago because he had caught a violent stomach bug and was so dehydrated he had to be hooked up to a machine. I don't know how she handled that, but I deeply respected her for remaining steadfast. 

Sometimes, I want to complain about my tight budget for decorating. 
I have many friends who are working patiently toward having a house to decorate. 

My husband works such long hours every day, and then comes home to do homework.
I know people who lost their jobs and would kill for the opportunity to get an MBA.

Where is the balance between counting your blessings, taking time to just stop and smell the roses, to appreciate the simple things in life, and then documenting those moments on your blog - mostly so that you can come back and re-read it later and be reminded,"Oh that was beautiful. I shouldn't take moments like that for granted"...
and bragging? or sounding like you're bragging?
Ultimately, at the end of the day, here's my problem: all that behind-the-scenes stuff? its not that it sounds bad or that its embarrassing... Its that its really just too intimate. Personally, I feel much more comfortable keeping things light. The only times I share the real rough moments, the burdens and the aches and pains... are with my nearest and dearest friends because they have earned that right to know
And they have proven they will turn around and help me continue to see the true, the good, and the beautiful in life.

It also seems that if I started focusing on the negative, frustrating, challenging parts of life, I would be going against this verse, which has been a constant inspiration and encouragement for me in the past few years:


I share the things that I genuinely try to focus on in my day to day life.

I don't share or focus on these beautiful things in life because I think
 there are actually people out there who suppose that everything I put on my blog or my facebook
 is the whole story - that that is my entire life, and nothing else is hidden from sight.
Isn't that the real problem here?
 Thinking that whatever a person has of their life online is it
A friend recently shared this quote on FB: 
"The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our   
behind-the-scenes 
with everyone else’s highlight reel.”  Steve Furtick
So... What's the solution? To simply remember that there is a behind-the-scenes for every person? Or to start sharing more of your own? 

The latter would be such a contradiction to this Southern girl's upbringing... ohhhh dear Lord.

Labels: , , , , , , ,