Does a Quote ever hit you the wrong way?

The Quote read: You are keeping yourself from the life you want by feeding the life you don't want.

While it seems simple or obvious, this quote disturbed me as I applied it to myself, my life, and my truest desires.

I'm not the type of person who likes to kill any hope or optimism in regards to joy or dream fulfillment with some kind of jaded or pessimistic remark; However, some simplifications are not entirely accurate and they bother me immensely as a deep thinker.

I live a simple life in a way, but it's also complicated in some ways. I dream of wealth because I've been poor most of my life. Whenever I did get the river of wealth flowing in my direction, I was not experienced or wise enough to make it last. So those few opportunities were very short-lived and only wet my appetite for more.

I do not consider myself a lazy person. I do the best with what I have (financially, physically, mentally, emotionally, and materialistically) no matter when or how. Perhaps most people do the same, but I've also noticed that some people (and I was one of them) forget easily how much they have. We can call them "hoarders" or "ingrates" if we feel envious about it, but some of them know they are wealthy and enjoy it. Just like I enjoy whatever little bit I have. Most of the time, people do not inherit great wealth the way we read about in books. Most of the time, people have to work for it themselves --- and the tragic part is that there are some people who have worked hard most of their lives and still have very little to show for it. That's not pessimism. That's just the cold hard truth.

So when I see a quote like the one I've shared above, telling me that it's my own fault for not having the life I want because I'm feeding the alternate life, I get a bit offended and defensive. I want to proclaim B.S. on that. I am not 100 percent responsible for living the life I don't want to live. There are many wordly factors that dictate a life that I don't want to live over living a life that I do want to live. I guess I need to break that down into details.

Remember that bumper sticker that read: I'd rather be fishing or golfing or whatever. Well, that person who would rather be doing something else, probably understands exactly why I don't find the quote very useful. Right now I'm sitting at a computer with cheap eyeglasses on so that I can try to catch the typos as I type, writing an article about my pathetic existence, instead of doing many other things I'd RATHER BE DOING.

I'd rather be swimming. (But I have no swimming pool.) I'd rather be driving. (But my car is broken down.) I'd rather be hanging out with gorgeous men and sexy women. (But they don't think I'm in their league.) I'd rather be dancing. (But this place is too small and crammed.) I'd rather be traveling. (But that's very expensive and I can't afford it.) I'd rather be eating lobster instead of ramen noodles. (But I don't know anyone who's catching lobster just to give it away for free.) I'd rather be at the salon getting a massage and my nails done. (But that's not free either.) I'd rather be wearing a new pretty perfectly fitted dress instead of my cutoff jean shorts and an old dusty t-shirt. (But no one inspires me to wear it anyway because fishing for a compliment these days is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.) I'd rather be on the water riding on a Waverunner. (But I don't have one, can't afford one, and don't know anyone who would lend me one.)

So, I am NOT feeding the life I don't want. I'm merely stuck in a world of extreme competition and envy and greed. I share my thoughts, my feelings, my love on a daily basis and that doesn't pay the rent. I never give up and I wake each day with a refreshed hope that somehow I'll find a way to live the life I always dreamed of living; but that doesn't mean that right now I'm living it. Nor does it mean, that I'm unconciously trying to stay in an unsatisfactory life.

Perhaps the quote was aimed at people with a simpler problem in life. Such as the woman who wants to be thin and is overweight. She is literally feeding the wrong life. In that example, the quote is applicable and useful. She can change her diet and begin an exercise regimen and obtain the body that she desires. There is no reason for her to be sad about it when the change is obtainable. However, I would advise her not to go exercise at the gym. Not only are their membership cards outrageously priced, the skinny bimbettes who already achieved their perfect bodies, are not very friendly or welcoming to new fatties who want to do the same regardless if you paid your dues and are ready to pay in sweat and hard work. They just consider you more competition and they don't like it. Instead, employ (like I have done after I witnessed those poser's bad attitudes) the "DIY Everywhere Is a Gym" attitude. Park in the furthest spot and walk. Walk to the store instead of drive if you can. Clean the house. Changing and folding sheets is good exercise. Lifting a basket of laundry is like lifting weights. Gardening is like doing squats. Mopping is like doing the row machine. You don't need to pay for their bad attitude. Just keep moving and watch your food intake. That's my advice if you're "feeding" the wrong life in regards to body image.

I don't have a problem with my body. I'm 5 foot 3, and I weigh about 175. I know that's "obese" according to the ideal provided by healthcare officials. I know that in 1993, I was the same height and only weighed 120. I had a baby in 1997, and I never got back to my size 5. I stayed at size 10 for a long time, but the 40s and pysch medications put me up to size 16 and I had to become a fan of thick and rubenesque figures. I am not feeding a life I don't want. I am merely living a life dictated by a world that existed before me, a world that is changing in ways that I don't agree with, and a world that I didn't create myself therefore will never be as great as what it could be in my own imagination.

In my next life, I'll be a turtle. I won't feed the wrong life. I'll live in a beautiful lake, rent free, with everything that God intended for me. I'll live happier, peaceful, and perfectly instead of the pathetic human world that was delivered to me for the past 53 years.