This week it’s hard rubbish collection in my neighbourhood. I love hard rubbish week. The fanatical spring cleaner in me enjoys the annual de-cluttering around the house that hard rubbish collection affords. The sticky beak in me enjoys seeing what others have been collecting in their nest and what junk they have been accumulating over the past 12 months or more. The scavenger in me is excited at what hidden treasure I might come across. Perhaps I might come across some wonderfully useful item that I desperately need. Or perhaps my neighbours will decide to let go of that one thing that will make my life complete.
Unlikely, but you just never know!
My 10 year old who has an imagination to rival Steven Spielberg, with his friends, have found numerous pieces of unwanted junk that they believe will be the thing they need to complete their sci-fi home video creation that’s in the making. And I’m not kidding when I say I may have a young James Cameron on my hands!
Hard rubbish fascinates me for another reason also. It’s amazing watching how many scavengers are out searching through the junk. Searching through rubbish. Patiently lifting, sorting, sifting through the garbage of another hoping to find an item that they will treasure. Quite literally, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
I think I’ve counted about a dozen foreigners traversing down my street in their cars, trucks and even vans, helping themselves to ‘our’ junk. They’re not hard to spot. I live in a court and we pretty much all know each other. Anyway, I have no problem with that, it’s out on the street to be thrown out so good luck to them I say. And it’s actually not illegal. Anyway, I digress.
My point today is that within our lives, so many of us judge ourselves by the material possessions, the values, the opinions and the qualities of others. We wonder what others have and we want it. We try to live up to other people’s standards. We feel inadequate if we don’t have the latest gadget that our friend has. We want to have the same hairdo as a celebrity. We want the same body as a movie star. We want to be like our buddy.
Taking a lesson from hard rubbish collection, one man’s junk is another mans’ treasure and so who are we to compare ourselves to others? Who are we to judge what is ‘great’ about someone else’s life. For all we know, that gorgeous dark wavy hair that we covet on our best friend might be her most despised physical characteristic. What you consider a burden in your life might be the ideal scenario for someone else.
How about we let go of other people’s ‘stuff’ and simply focus on what our ‘treasures’ are because we are all different. Stop comparing and start living.
Love your life, flaws and all. It’s the only one you have. If you don’t like it, change it and if you can’t change it, learn to live with it.