How often do those platitudinous words declaring YOU ARE ENOUGH show up in our Instagram feeds, but how much do we truly believe them? Really, how often do we realize we are being told the opposite, not just from the outside, but from our own deepest selves?
So many of us illustrators and creative types struggle with envy. We compare where we are in our careers with where others seem to be. We compare our own artistic abilities to those we admire in others. We want what they have, because it seems better than what we have. And somehow we think we should have better, different from what we have. And at the same time, we have so much, but we don’t want it. Or we at least want what others have more.
Why can’t we want what we have? Why can’t we, in a sense, be envious of ourselves? While that might be going too far, certainly wanting what we have should be enough. That is an act of gratitude. Imagine giving someone a gift, and you know that it’s exactly what they want and need. This makes us feel amazing, that what we gave was joyously received. Now imagine the opposite: you give something to someone that you know will really bless them, but they just don’t appreciate it. They carelessly toss it aside as they look forlornly at some distant thing someone else has. Something bigger, shinier, better … something different. You, as the gift giver and friend, would be…
