Supposedly, nobody ever said life was fair. Well, I’m saying it right now. Maybe I’m a nobody so the adage still works but I’ve come to believe that life is absolutely fair. Yes, there are selfish jerks who seem to be rewarded while truly good, hardworking, selfless people seem to be punished. There are people who’ve lived like there’s no tomorrow that live long, healthy lives while people who ate healthy, exercised and did everything right have died young. There are innocent children who suffer with terminal illness while evil dictators enjoy the good life. So how is it that I can possibly believe that life is fair? Because most people only see life on a superficial level, but it’s time that we dig a little deeper.
There are a number of ways in which life could be completely fair that don’t require a multi-page blog explanation. Life could be a reward or punishment based on how we behaved in a former life. It can be a karmic thing based on how much joy we’ve brought others, even if that joy is a result of a dictator killing his nation’s supposed enemies or a crooked politician passing a bill that will help thousands of oil drillers. Life could also be fair because our built-in biases prevent us from seeing the truth. One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.
There are also biases that are a result of us not being able to see the big picture. Perhaps had Hitler not killed millions of Jews, those Jews would’ve assimilated, Israel would never have been founded, and we’d all be living under a violent Islamic regime right now. And yes, I recognize that this very statement is a result of my own biases and perhaps such a way of life would be an improvement on our unfair capitalistic system.
The point is, an interpretation of what is fair is often a result of perspective or can be a result of things we’re not aware of like previous lives or the amount of people directly or indirectly helped from seemingly evil actions. But I’m not going to delve into any of these explanations to explain why I believe life is fair since they’re only rationalizations and do little to help us make our lives more pleasant now.
The main reason I believe life is fair is because it’s a direct result of what you focus on. If you think about it, materialistic people tend to have more stuff. That’s because having stuff is more important to them. Those that don’t need a lot of stuff usually don’t have a lot of stuff. Some people need to have positions of power so they can feel good about themselves. Usually they get it. Angry people tend to have more to be angry about. Happy people tend to have more to be happy about. Drama queens attract other drama queens. Those who often complain usually have a lot to complain about. When people have dreams about becoming something, it usually remains a dream. The only way to achieve that dream is either to put all of your energy into it with a leap of faith, or, to have a hole in your life that requires this dream becoming real in order to feel fulfilled. This is why famous people either tend to be really grounded go-getters or hot messes who always require attention.
If you aren’t sure what’s important to you in your life, look around you. Everything you’re surrounded by is what’s important to you. And by important I mean what you give energy to. For me, I value love, friendship, fun, creativity, spirituality and time. Unfortunately, the latter doesn’t jive well with full time jobs, so I don’t get a lot of those. Riches aren’t necessary to have any of those values so I don’t get to see a lot of that either. But I also tend to avoid a lot of drama, mean people, jealousy, hatred, violence, and all that negative stuff…because I don’t focus on it. I rarely watch the news or dramatic reality shows, I don’t have a need to show off material possessions or brag about my accomplishments, and I tend to feel that the less you need to be happy, the more likely you are to be happy. I also have a lot of clutter in my life, because my brain is kind of cluttered. I’m working on that. But looking at my life, yes, it’s pretty much filled with what I give energy too.
That’s not to say that I wouldn’t like to have millions of dollars or be a famous writer. It’s just that I haven’t put enough energy into those things. And if you don’t have the things you think you want, neither have you. This can either be because you don’t put a lot of energy into thoughts about it, or, when you do think about it, you think about how you don’t have it, creating that very reality. Whatever you’re giving energy to includes the things you don’t want, but frequently dwell on.
The cruel trick to life is that it gives us exactly what we think about, but most of us think about what we don’t want instead of what we do. This is the wisdom behind the genie or leprechaun myth. You have to focus on exactly what you want or else you’ll get a version of whatever takes the least energy to manifest. So if you think, I’d like a fun job, but don’t put a lot of passion behind it, you’ll get a job as a babysitter. But if you say, I want to be a rock star, you’ll get the version that equates to the energy you put behind it. That could be being a bona fide rock star, having a hit on YouTube, or winning at a game of Rock Star.
“Okay,” you’re thinking. But some people are born more fortunate than others. Some are born to rich families and get a free pass through life while others are born in third-world countries and have to continually suffer. They have to think small because that’s all they know. This is true, and I agree, but there are two assumptions here that I disagree with.
For starters, some of the richest people are also some of the most miserable people, and there are plenty of people who live in third-world countries who live joyous, carefree lives. In fact, many are quite a bit happier than the citizens of our stress-filled, dog-eat-dog first world. Yes, they don’t know what they’re missing, but who cares? Ignorance is bliss. Of course, there are plenty of very happy rich folks and very miserable poor folks. But the point is that how much you’re worth isn’t necessarily indicative of how fulfilled you are.
The second assumption I disagree with is that the lives we are born into happen by pure chance—the luck of the draw. No, I believe we are given the exact lives we need to grow. When I talk about growth, I’m talking about an ideal where one needs nothing to be happy and can withstand the most grueling of challenges. If you can get there, you are richer than any billionaire and much, much less vulnerable. Because there is nothing that can make you unhappy, whereas the billionaire has billions of things he can lose that will make him unhappy, so he has to put a lot of energy into holding onto them.
But life isn’t just about money. And that’s another reason why I think it’s completely fair. I believe that the life we are given is like a pie chart, with every single person being born with 100% of a pie that’s divided into twelve slices of varying sizes. If you know…
To read the rest of this article and find out how big the slices are on your personal pie chart, click below: http://thelaymansanswerstoeverything.com/?p=2274
Marc Oromaner is a spiritual author and speaker who teaches how we can discover our destiny using clues found in the media and in our lives. His book, "The Myth of Lost" (www.themythoflost.com) deciphers the hidden wisdom of the hit TV show and explains how we can use this wisdom to overcome our own challenges.
Marc's twenty years of experience working in advertising and promotion has given him a unique insight into what makes products--and people--tick. He graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Television & Radio and went on to complete a two-year advertising copywriter program at The Creative Circus in Atlanta. Working in on-air promotions at Lifetime Television and CBS News, and then in advertising with clients such as NASA, The New York Botanical Garden, and Affinia Hotels, Marc developed a talent for uncovering the soul of a brand. This skill was sharpened after he began studying at The Kabbalah Centre in New York and exploring many other spiritual philosophies including The Law of Attraction.
Today, Marc lives in New York City where he combines his background in advertising and spirituality to help people and brands find their path in an increasingly convoluted world. His blog, "The Layman's Answers To Everything" (http://thelaymansanswerstoeverything.com/) points out the patterns that run through all great stories including our own. These patterns are clues which are meant to guide us towards a life full of love, light, and fulfillment.