One of the mistakes many of us make is that we feel sorry for ourselves, or for others, thinking that life should be fair, or that someday it will be. It's not, and it won't be. When we make this mistake we tend to spend a lot of time wallowing and/ or complaining about what's wrong with life. We share with others, discussing the injustices of life. "It's not fair," we complain, not realizing that, perhaps, it was never inteded to be.
One of the nice things about surrendering to the fact that life isn't fair is that it keeps us from feeling sorry for ourselves by encouraging us to do the very best we can with what we have. We know it's not "life's job" to make everything perfect, it's our own challange. Surrendering to this fact also keeps us from feeling sorry for others because we are reminded that everyone is delt a different hand, and everyone has unique strengths and callanges. This insight has helped me with problems in life, the difficult dicisions I've had to make about who to help and who I can't help, as well as with my own personal struggles during those times that I have felt victimized or unfairly treated. It almost always wakes me up to reality, and puts me back on track.
The fact that life isn't fair doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything in our power to improve our own lives, or the world as a whole. To the contrary, it suggest that we should. When we don't recognize or admit that life isn't fair, we tend to feel pity for others and for ourselves. Pity, of course, is a self- defeating emotion that does nothing for anyone, except to make everyone feel worse than they already do. When we do recognize that lie isn't fair, hoever, we feel compassion for others and for ourselves. And compassion is a heartfelt emotion that delivers loving kindness to everyone it touches. The next time we find ourselves thinking about the injustices of the world, try reminding yourself of this very basic fact. You may be suprised that it can nudge you out of self- pity, and into helpful action.
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