Copyright

She was a ‘friend,’ and we were discussing a very difficult situation I was experiencing.  She immediately went on to tell me that my ‘thing’ was nothing compared to what she was going through.  She one upped me.  Apparently, I had a little problem, while she had numerous, gigantic and intricate issues.  I didn’t know how to react.  It wasn't a competition.  Which led me to think - no one has a copyright on problems.  We all have them.  Big or small.  Some of us have them often.  Some of us have them often and a lot of them.  Sometimes we throw ourselves a pity party and think about our huge struggles.  We view our situation as the biggest, baddest, ugliest crisis.  No one on earth could be going through this.  No one!!!  We would like to assume that having somebody else’s ‘easier’ problems would be better for us.  We look at others who might not be going through the pain or the discomfort that we have and think we would be better off.  We could handle THAT problem quickly; easily.  But would we?  Could we?  Sometimes you hear people comparing problems – it’s like a contest – ‘you don’t get it, my problem is bigger, uglier, and more constant than yours.’  In the end, I don’t think any of us would really trade our problems for someone else’s.  We would like to think so, but if we were to assume the whole problem, and all the people involved, and all the consequences, we would surely always choose our own problem.  We would know how to handle that!  Thanking today that God gives me the grace and strength to handle my own problems.