Comparing Ourselves

Hello everyone --

The topic of comparing myself to others has been on my mind. Whether it is comparing whether I am as "spiritual" as someone else, or as "depressed" as someone else, or as "good" as someone else.

For some reason, this little poem from childhood has always stayed with me as a commentary on the futility of such comparisons.

[i]<font color="blue">I met a little elf man once
Down where the lilies blow
I asked him why he was so small
And why he didn't grow.
He slightly frowned
And with his eye
He looked me through and through.
"I'm quite as big for me," said he,
"As you are big for you."

I believe the author was listed in this little book of children's poems as "Anonymous."

I really like that poem wants2!!!

As far as comparing myself to others.... I don't! (I gave it up a while ago)

Take care,
Fuzzy

Wants2Fly,

I love that. So much meaning in such a small poem. Perfect!

Thank-you.

ty for that, wants2. i often get caught in comparisons as well. i think i do because i use "relation" so much to communicate with others...the two are very closely related i think.

ty for posting that.

I love it! That good little elf was "enough" unto himself!

Wonder how he got there? Did he have magnificent parents that helped him develop a healthy sense of self or did he have to learn it the hard way, the way most of us here have to do it? Hmmm...

Either way, he was truly blessed!

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i use "relation" so much to communicate

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Kimmy, your statement is very interesting. Would you please care to explain it a bit more?

I like this poem too. It says a lot.

Thank you for sharing it.
Hugs!
nightdream

sure. when someone talks to me, my automatic response is to relate to a person...in relation i can find the symptathy, compassion, insight, experience, etc. that i need to carry on certain conversations. i've realized this about myself. when ppl talk to me, i, lots of times, apply what they're talking about to self and what i did do, would do, could do, etc. in response.

for instance if you were to post about a trip you took, my automatic response is to find some relation in my own life and share that way. if you were to talk about something i'd never done like taking a trip to the carribean, it would be an automatic response to think what that would be like for me and what i would've done if i could, etc.

it's hard to put into words, but i've always been that way and t knows that it's also something i subconciously require from ppl as well before i'll share with them. it's one of the strange things about me...one of the many i hope i made SOME kind of sense, because i'm getting confused myself...lol.

kd

wants2 thanks for sharing that wonderful little poem. For anyone who has read a number of my threads, they mostly have a comparison theme to them. A trap I often fall into, but in a different way than what you mentioned. I guess what I'm personally looking for is that my reactions to circumstances aren't totally unique. As bad as I think of myself, I also hate to think of myself as a total screw-up either, so I look to see if others would have the same reactions as I would to a given situation. Obviously, something that I need to stop doing and just concentrate on myself and how I feel about my reactions myself and to be satisfied that in my own mind at least that I don't overreact, with no need to compare myself to others. Thanks for this little reminder that I really need to work in this area.