There was once a time in my life

When I was constantly comparing myself to others

Was I a better runner than him

Did I have more friends than her

Was he earning more than me

Was I a better driver than her

Was he more intelligent than me

Did I get more social invitations than her

Was he more liked than me

I resented those who appeared to be doing better than me

It made me very unhappy

Leading me into jealousy and feelings of low self esteem

It took me a long time to figure it all out

I am in a better place now

Having learned to see the world in a different way

I am no longer in a race to beat everybody around me

I have learned how important it is to trust those you love

And not to be jealous of their fun times without me

I am proud of my own successes

Equally proud of my valiant efforts that led to failures

I can feel genuine pride in the success of my friends

Without the urge to compare them to me

I have learned to measure my achievements against my own expectations

Awarding myself a bye whenever I miss a goal

I love looking at the sun the moon and the stars

I really enjoy the company of my friends

I enjoy good food and fine wines

I get pleasure from lots of simple things

All without worrying about which or who I like best

They all make me happy in different ways

My own jealousy race was called off a long time ago

Sadly I see others still trapped in theirs

A race without any winners