I took this weird class in high school. It was called Sociology and it was taught by the audio/visual lady- the lady that set up TV/VCRs in classrooms and such. I believe it was Ms. Smith. There was like seven of us in the class and it was an excuse for our teacher to present Leo Buscaglia, Norman Vincent Peale and others that dealt with being a human. It was a great class (one I try to emulate actually). One person we studied was Dale Carnegie. One such advice he gave was to- Compare Down. Instead of being envious of people that appear to be more successful and luckier than us, we should think of the people that might be envious of us.
That involves judgement. For me this invokes people that are blind or are in a wheelchair, or have cancer. I fear this may lead to pity when people don’t want it. They may actually be happier than me.
However, it reminds me to be happy with what I have. That I am lucky. That I should not complain when someone without two legs and no disability are not complaining.
I remind myself that if I choose happiness right now, I am probably better off than any rich and famous person.
Thomas Cannon Author 