Here is a Korean folktale.
A woodcutter went to the mountain for some wood.
He grabbed a vine to remove it but it was the tail of a tiger that was sleeping in the shade.
The woodcutter who touched the sleeping tiger was surprised and climbed up the tree.
The angry tiger shook the tree wildly.
The woodcutter was surprised, released the tree and fell from it. But he fell on the tiger’s back.
The tiger shook his body in surprise.
The woodcutter tried hard not to fall from the tiger’s back.
The tiger started running to shake off the woodcutter.
The woodcutter clasped the tiger’s back more tightly in order to survive.
A farmer who was working in a field nearby under the hot sun complained when he saw this in the distance.
“I live my whole life working in sweat and some are so lucky that they can just fool around and ride on a tiger’s back?”
The farmer envied the woodcutter who was holding the tiger body so that he wouldn’t die.
Sometimes everyone else looks happy and it feels like I’m the only one who’s having a hard time.
I work hard, but others seem to be playing leisurely on the back of tigers.
But actually if one look’s carefully, everyone lives similar lives.
Comparing oneself to others is only going to divvy up various rankings amongst people in the world and make one unhappy because his place is never good enough compared with everyone else.
Not comparing to others allows oneself to focus on finding one’s own happiness.
Furthermore, it would be big-hearted of those who are willing to celebrate others who have finally reached the position of being able to play and enjoy leisure time after a long hard day of work.
Therefore, people only need to get rid of the mind of comparison.
I propose to be big-hearted as my 2020 New Year’s resolution.
Source: maummonthly.com
