Content or Satisfied

We are often told that we should be content with what we have. There are many people who are less fortunate, and we should be thankful. And this is true. There is always someone who is worse off than we are, and to verify that all we need to do is take a look around our world, and look throughout history. But this can all be misleading.

Being content with what we have should not imply being satisfied with the way things are. I should appreciate that I have a home to live in, and a family to share it with. In these things I need to be content. I battle depression every day, but there are many people who are worse off than I am. I should be grateful that I am not worse off than I am. My wife and I have jobs while many people are unemployed. We should be appreciative of this, which we are.

But if I convince myself that being content in what I have means that I should be satisfied with the way things are, I would not push myself for something beyond what I have already accomplished. I enjoy photography, and this photo of the butterfly was not the first one I took of it. I took a photo, which makes me content, however I was not satisfied of the content. I took several more photos, one of which is the one featured above. Because I was not satisfied with the first photo, I took more until I had one that I could be proud of.

I have suffered from depression my entire life, and I can be content with my life as it is, because it could be worse. But I cannot be satisfied to sit around and accept my life as it is while so many people struggle every day. If I was satisfied with my life the way it was, I wouldn’t have started a blog or written a book to help others who struggle. I would simply sit back and accept my life as it is while people all over the world suffer in silence. But I join those who push themselves every day to continue to fight the good fight. There are so many people out there pushing themselves beyond what they thought they were capable of because they are not satisfied with the way things are, even though they may be content in what they have.

Do not disregard that feeling that is pushing you beyond what you have already accomplished because something is telling you that you should be content with what you have. We must all work to better ourselves for the benefit of others. Push yourself so that you may help someone who is worse off than you. Don’t be satisfied to watch other people struggle, and don’t tear them down for your benefit. Be content in what you have, but do not accept that you should not work hard in order to make things better than they are.