Never Enough

Suzie is disappointed in me.  And I do not blame her.  She refuses to come down and hang out with me while I do work because I didn’t spend enough time with her the past several days to take her outside and play in the creek or backyard.  The weather has just been too wet and icky to really do anything.  And I just don’t have the time to give her a bath afterwards.  So, she has spent the whole morning upstairs in our bedroom, just pouting and huffing and puffing. 
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According to Suzie her play times in the past several days are not enough.  And it really isn’t.  I should do better, and I promised her on Friday and Saturday it would be better, and my life will hopefully be more balanced soon.  But in the meantime… what I am doing for her is not enough. 

Now you all might have felt like Suzie or maybe feeling like Suzie right now.  Suzie is a good dog, always has been, does everything right, listens well, obeys every command, does everything we tell her to do.  And her reward should be to get outside and play, but regardless of how well she behaves and everything she has done to please us, her play time never arrives, making her feel like she isn’t doing enough. 

Breaks my heart that she might feel this way and it breaks my heart that people feel this way as well.  Because sometimes no matter how hard we try, no matter how much effort we put into our workplace, social lives, and extracurricular activities, no matter how much passion we put in… the outcomes seems like it is never enough. 

When you feel like the world is telling you what you do, who you are, and all your passion and ability is never enough it makes you feel unappreciated.  Even if you do the right thing, even when you did a little bit extra, and have performed your duty to the highest of levels and yet it feels as if it was all for nothing. 

In honesty we have all felt experienced what it feels like to be unappreciated.  Sometimes talking about it can make you a pariah to others and they shut the door in your face or chose to downplay your feelings.  But other times you actually run into sympathetic people how actually care about the way you feel.  Hopefully we can all surround ourselves more with those sympathetic people. 

If you are reading this and feel like you are unappreciated, feel like a pariah in your social, work, school, or community setting, I pray for better days.  No one should treat anyone less than anyone else.  No one should feel that they are unappreciated. 

In God’s eyes, you are necessary, important, useful, worthwhile to be cared about and loved.  And I encourage anyone who feels like the world is pointing the finger at you, you are feeling unappreciated, you are feeling worthless, talk to someone, anyone.  Sometimes just talking to someone that truly cares can help a lot.  I know what you might be going through is rough, but I know that it won’t last forever.

Sure, it is painful feeling this way now, but I promise you it is temporary, even if your situation and feeling has been going on for a while.  You will find freedom; you will find what it means to be loved.  Just hang on, keep grinding, talk to supportive people, and pay attention to what God might be giving you so that you can find your rightful place in this world.

Gosh darn it… Now after writing this, I better take Suzie out to play so she feels appreciated.  God bless you all.

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