The Grass is Always Greener on the Other Side

My sister, Esther, called me this morning. It was funny to hear her say how much she admired me and wished she could be more like me. It was funny because I feel that same way about her. I admire her so much... her strength, her kindness, her gentle nature, everything. She sets such a great example for me and I hope that someday I can be more like her.

Sooo... the grass is always greener on the other side. No matter how much she thinks I'm great and wants to be like me, I will always feel the same about her. We always seem to think everyone else is better than us, has more than us, etc. Where is the line between striving to be better and being happy with yourself, who you are, and what you have? We were not all created equal... on purpose.

A couple of years ago I listened to a talk at a Stake Young Women Leadership meeting. The sister spoke about accepting herself, faults and strengths and all, and in essence, saying to Heavenly Father "Here I am. I know I'm not perfect but I'm trying. Please let me be a tool in Thy hands, as I am now." It wasn't a "I'm never getting better than this," it was a "I know I'm not perfect but I still want to be useful." I really like that. We don't have to be perfect to have an impact. We can and should accept ourselves, allow ourselves to see our strengths (not just our weaknesses), and recognize that we are actually pretty good!

WE DON"T HAVE TO BE PERFECT TO BE A GOOD PERSON! Making a mistake doesn't meen that we are a bad person. Even really great people make mistakes. I would venture to say that if the prophet was asked if he made mistakes, even today, he would say "Yes." There was only one perfect person and that was our Savior. No one else is perfect but there are still lots of good people.

So to my sister, Essy, and all my other siblings and friends, I say... My grass is not greener than yours, it's just a different shade. :)

I love you, Essy, Angel, Jani, Laralei, Aimie, and Chelsea.