day 18: step 1

When we went to the zoo, I wore my coat over a summer top and jeans and my ballet flats. It is autumn after all, and honestly a coat was already a bit extreme. No boots for me, I said, and I also didn’t wear socks. Maybe it’s because I was so focused on getting in the car and driving that I didn’t realize it was around nine degrees Celsius (48 Fahrenheit), by the time we were at the zoo, it was obviously too late to change, so I walked around, coping for most of the time. Puffs of smokey air coming out of the mouths of babes, mommies and goats, it was cold. My feet were fully frozen by the time we returned to the car to go home.

My way of dealing with cold weather is absolute, total denial. Even on absolutely frigid, middle-of-winter days, I stand on the street corner repeating to myself, I am not cold, I am not cold, I am not cold, I am warm, I am warm, I am warm.   In my mind October is still a warm month, I should be able to walk outside in my flip-flops, and I should be able to survive without a coat.

So this is how I try to live now even though everything around me is saying, this is very, very cold. The trees are losing their leaves, plants get ready to die for the winter, the faithful Germans are in coats and boots, but I am still holding on to my sock-less ballet flats.

The first step in warming up when in the great outdoors is realizing that, yes, I am in Western Europe. I no longer live in Asia or Australia. In Western Europe this year, October means cold. So Devi, you are actually cold, and you will be warm when you wear a winter coat, boots, and a few layers underneath.

The first step in dealing with comparison is believing that it is wrong, not just a less-than-preferred way of living, but wrong. Something from which to flee.

So this is the question I am asking myself today – do I really believe that comparison is wrong, that it takes me away from the way God wants me to live? What do I need to do if I do believe that it is wrong? And if you have been walking this journey with me, it is also the question I have for you. Do you believe that comparison is wrong, that it takes you away from the way God wants you to live? What do you need to do today if you believe that it is wrong? 

I’m writing daily in October as part of The Nester’s 31 Days challenge, check out my posts here, and head over to the Nesting Place for other great 31 Days topics.