When people are nice to you, be nice to them. In case you haven't realized it, they don't have to be nice to you.
When times are tough and people are generous to you with their time, money, and posessions, don't forget what they have done when you're in a better place. They don't have to share their things and their time with you.
When people open up to you and trust you, don't laugh at them and keep their secrets. They don't have to let you into their hearts.
When people tolerate your stupid mistakes and are forgiving when you mess up, don't assume their patience will never run out. They don't have to stick with you through your crap.
When someone lends you a listening ear, vent for awhile if you need, but don't make the conversation about you all the time. They don't have to nod and listen and be polite.
When people point out your flaws because they want you to be better, don't get angry or defensive. They don't have to care about you being the best you can be.
And when people are mean, disloyal, indifferent, apathetic, nasty, rude, bitchy, or ungrateful towards you, so what? They don't owe it to you to be nice. Just as you don't owe it to them to stick around.
This life and the way the world spins around is made up of relationships. Our relationships to people and to things. How we treat people and how we treat life determines how people treat us and how life treats us.
It's almost as simple as that.
Call it whatever you want. Reaping what you sow. The law of attraction. Karma. Getting your due.
But if you want people to be nice to you, start being nice yourself. If you want good things in life to come your way, start being generous with the way you live your life.
And you may say that there are plenty of good people in crappy circumstances, and that may be true. But if you look closer, you might see that it doesn't matter. Because for some people, happiness doesn't depend on their circumstance - it depends on them. It's not about what you have; it's about who you are.
As for those who seem 'good' and even 'martyr-like' parading their good deeds in the face of 'terrible' injustice and stress and chaos, they're not really happy. They're looking for pity, for sympathy, for applause for their 'noble' character, for some kind of validation and approval.
But the really content are beyond that. They accept the parts of life they can't change but strive to change all the things about themselves that they know can use some work. They learn from the past but are not afraid to face tomorrow.
But most of all, they realize that life doesn't owe them any single thing. And instead of seeing everyone who has it better, they see that so many have it worse. They see that they can sit around and complain about the injustice of it all or wallow in a pool of pity. Or, they can say, well, look at all the things I do have. I want more of that. How do I get more of that?
And so they seek. And they learn. And they discover that life IS indeed a gift. But it comes wrapped in delicate packaging and sealed in a locked box and without enough care and the right keys, you're forever going to think it's a shit gift when you haven't even begun to open it and look at the real thing.
People like that, they've found the real thing.
When times are tough and people are generous to you with their time, money, and posessions, don't forget what they have done when you're in a better place. They don't have to share their things and their time with you.
When people open up to you and trust you, don't laugh at them and keep their secrets. They don't have to let you into their hearts.
When people tolerate your stupid mistakes and are forgiving when you mess up, don't assume their patience will never run out. They don't have to stick with you through your crap.
When someone lends you a listening ear, vent for awhile if you need, but don't make the conversation about you all the time. They don't have to nod and listen and be polite.
When people point out your flaws because they want you to be better, don't get angry or defensive. They don't have to care about you being the best you can be.
And when people are mean, disloyal, indifferent, apathetic, nasty, rude, bitchy, or ungrateful towards you, so what? They don't owe it to you to be nice. Just as you don't owe it to them to stick around.
This life and the way the world spins around is made up of relationships. Our relationships to people and to things. How we treat people and how we treat life determines how people treat us and how life treats us.
It's almost as simple as that.
Call it whatever you want. Reaping what you sow. The law of attraction. Karma. Getting your due.
But if you want people to be nice to you, start being nice yourself. If you want good things in life to come your way, start being generous with the way you live your life.
And you may say that there are plenty of good people in crappy circumstances, and that may be true. But if you look closer, you might see that it doesn't matter. Because for some people, happiness doesn't depend on their circumstance - it depends on them. It's not about what you have; it's about who you are.
As for those who seem 'good' and even 'martyr-like' parading their good deeds in the face of 'terrible' injustice and stress and chaos, they're not really happy. They're looking for pity, for sympathy, for applause for their 'noble' character, for some kind of validation and approval.
But the really content are beyond that. They accept the parts of life they can't change but strive to change all the things about themselves that they know can use some work. They learn from the past but are not afraid to face tomorrow.
But most of all, they realize that life doesn't owe them any single thing. And instead of seeing everyone who has it better, they see that so many have it worse. They see that they can sit around and complain about the injustice of it all or wallow in a pool of pity. Or, they can say, well, look at all the things I do have. I want more of that. How do I get more of that?
And so they seek. And they learn. And they discover that life IS indeed a gift. But it comes wrapped in delicate packaging and sealed in a locked box and without enough care and the right keys, you're forever going to think it's a shit gift when you haven't even begun to open it and look at the real thing.
People like that, they've found the real thing.
I wonder if there are any pessimists who are successful in life.
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