The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He causes me to lie down in green pastures
psalm 23
first, my apologies on this post. an errant “click” on the “publish” button unleashed a very premature draft.
the theme of this post is about coveting.
in life, there are things that are out of your control. in retrospect, you can come to the realization that you never had a chance. thus, emotions such as envy, hate and frustration relating to coveting are unnecessary.
there are two stories of “when i never had a chance.”
i was out of law school and looking for my career job. my resume was stacked with academic achievement, order of the coif, being manager of law journal etc. the law school’s placement offices told me they found the perfect match. the job was mine for the taking! all i needed to do was the interview. the interview went great. despite the placement office’s enthusiasm of the job being a lock, the firm never got back to me. one of the firm’s specialties was mobile home park litigation.
years later, i met a friend for a drink. he had a date who was also a lawyer. she and i spoke and i realized that she had got the job at that firm. in the conversation, i also learned that her grandfather owned a number of those mobile home parks. at that point, it all made sense. the law firm believed that hiring her instead of me would be important as far as clients. perhaps, her grandfather was already a firm client. or, the firm wanted him as a client. thus, no matter how great of an attorney i was, her hiring was more valuable than obtaining a skilled associate. she was a capable attorney with an intangible. a great hire. at that moment, i realized that i never had a chance. i found it reassuring that i didn’t mess up my opportunity.
the second story.
recently, i noticed the bunny who essentially lived on our lawn had been missing. i thought that the nearby construction may have scared it away. when talking a neighborhood walk, we caught sight of the bunny. it was hanging out on a neighbor’s amazing patch of green grass. it was an idyllic sight, a restful green blanket. the bunny had found a greener pasture. on another walk, i found the bunny enjoying the same lawn.(note: the post’s photo is of said bunny on said lawn) again, this was another moment where i realized we had no chance. this one was where there was actually a greener pasture. my neighbor was not to blame. their lawn was awesome.
these stories are not intended to be about resignation or defeat. while individuals have their game plan and directions in life, there are moments where things do not go the way as expected. despite this, the maintenance of one’s morals and values should not be discontinued because of a bump in the road. one should not devolve themselves into coveting. sometimes losses are not about yourself. thus, it is not worth getting oneself worked up about other’s dealing or accomplishments. rather, one can achieve happiness and success staying our course with one’s morals and values.
in sum, as it is said in perhaps the most famous of all psalms, “may only goodness and kindness pursue me all the days of my life.” walking away from moments of coveting may allow for one to find their own greener pastures.
be well!!
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