That which is mine, and that which is yours...

.
Most people have a good idea as to the things they own, and the things that are the property of somebody else. And most people respect this concept.

Yet the time that we could leave our doors unlocked and trust that everything you own would still be there upon our return is long gone.
Nowadays we need to lock windows and doors ~ often with multiple locks; sometimes with the added security of an alarm system ~ and then still we may not have faith that things will still be there the way you left them when you walked out. Even indoors we put our valuables away in a safe place...

Somehow it seems that the line between that which is mine and that which is yours has become less self-evident. So much so that we can’t put our faith in the recognition of that line anymore.

In today’s world there are people who feel that they can take things that are the property of somebody else in order to sell for profit. And it seems that the fact that they can, in some weird and convoluted way makes them feel that they have the right to do so.

Of course it doesn’t help that when caught, all they end up from a punitive perspective is a slap on the wrist. Quite a difference with the days long one when the punishment for thieves caught stealing or burglarising was to have a hand chopped off. Ouch!!

So what is it that makes the grass always greener on the other side of the fence? Why are we lusting after those things that are out of reach for us ~ be it because they belong to somebody else or because we simply don’t have the resources to acquire them? What is it that makes us think that the life of someone else is better than our own?

And perhaps even more interesting, if we feel that the lives of those other people are so much better than our own ~ what keeps us from bettering our own lives?
Instead we just keep looking at the neighbors who seem to have it all, maybe even complaining that we should have at least the same things ~ after all aren’t we working just as hard, or even harder than they are?

At that point, this line between that which is mine and that which is yours has turned into a competition. And when we get stuck in that state of competition ~ always comparing ourselves to those who seem to have it all ~ we can never truly appreciate the things that we already have; the things that belong to us; ourselves...

In a sense we may even be thieves ~ stealing not from others, but from ourselves the sense of accomplishment, of acceptance, of happiness...
.
.