if we’re being honest, we’ve all experienced that awful feeling of jealousy. we know it’s a pointless emotion, but every now and then it is hard to avoid. there have been times when i have wanted something someone has had so much that i would secretly want them to fail. to give you an example… i used to want to be the best dancer. as embarrassing as it is to admit, during competitions i would hope, wish, pray that my competition would fall out of a turn or jeté into a curtain. in hindsight, it was silly. i mean why did she have to fail for me to succeed? & even if she did fail, there would just be one more brilliant dancer behind her waiting to out dance me.
also, suppose that i was somehow able to take that person’s place & steal the quality i envied so much? would i want to switch places? maybe she can balance on pointe for hours, but what if she suffers from severe anxiety or has an abusive parent?
i suppose what i’m trying to say is that someone’s failure won’t make you successful. if that person does fail, there will be someone else to take her place. jealousy is a thief. It robs you of your sense of reason and, sometimes, sanity.
i’ve become much more comfortable with the idea that there’s room for all of us to succeed. honestly, aside from physical and mental limitations, if we really want to succeed nothing will stop us. certainly not the success of others.
“i cheer for people. i was raised to believe there’s enough sun for everybody” -tracee ellis ross
