Perspective

It’s funny how most times our worth (both internal and external) is derived from or reflected in the people we choose to surround ourselves with.  Old sayings abound with the wisdom of birds of a feather.  What used to inspire people to seek betterment through befriending people they wanted to emulate has over the years been more interpreted by some to not reach too high.  When I was younger the people I spent the most time hanging around were the people I thought I was worthy of being around when I should have been choosing the people I wanted to be more like.  I had a very low sense of self-worth.   I felt I wasn’t good enough to be around a better class of people.  This attitude was also reflected for the most part in the girls I dated in college.  I let many great women go because I was afraid I might ruin her, I didn’t want people to see these girls with me and think less of them.  As I got older I began to realize the folly in this.  I have always been a person with a good heart even if I didn’t see it.  There have always been people around me who had faith in me and knew the type of person I had the potential to be.  Perspective is a very weird thing, while I had always thought I wasn’t good enough to hang around certain people or date certain women these friends always seemed to have this sad feeling because they knew I was too good to be hanging around the people I did.  It’s a difficult thing to look at yourself and give an honest assessment.  In my eyes my brothers are still these giant men that make me feel just a little bit smaller when I’m around them.  Not in a bad way, just that being the youngest and smallest growing up that’s just how I still see myself around them.  You can’t judge yourself necessarily by the company you keep either.  While you look around and think you are surrounded by people better than you there may be someone out there who thinks you are better than anyone else.  I don’t know how to fix self-image; if I did I’d be rich.  All I know is that the right perspective can change everything.  Instead of choosing the people you think you are worthy of try to choose the people that you wish you could be a little bit more like.  Remember that people see what they want to see, some may see your heart, others may see your past, and others still may see your potential.