Thoughts on a thought:

I reached an epiphany in casual, quippy, conversation the other day. In wishing a friend well, by way of "Have a great day!" or something to that effect. The response came back that my friend would have a good day, but not so much so as to make the other days jealous.

I found that comment to contain a kernel of pathos, almost as though my friend were wanting mediocrity, which I doubt was the case; I'm sure my friend sought only stability, or perhaps didn't want to profess to too much expectation given any particular one day, or perhaps was simply exercising the ample wit that is my friend's to wield. In any case, my response was, "Every day should be jealous of tomorrow."

I've taken a day now to think about that, and to allow others to as well, and the more I think about it, the more I believe it to be true.

What about bad days? What about the unforeseen circumstances that can send the greatest of days into a downward spiral? What about the manipulations and intrusions of those in our lives who can't see today in the light of yesterday because yesterday they had a job, they had a friend, they had a lover, they had a husband or a wife, they had a son or daughter and today what they had is lost, or worse, and their myriad compound yesterdays will forever be better than the future they cannot see?

Good question. I'm sure I'll be working through that myself on such days. I'm sure it can be done though, as there are many ways to incite jealousy in history. My next worst day may put my last worst day to shame, raising the standard of worse days to come, making all subsequent days better by comparison, but what of that day? How will it be better than its antecedent days? It will only be better if I live better through it, and even then perhaps only in hindsight or through a perspective better then mine will be at the time, but the challenge remains.

Yesterday was beautiful, warm and sunny here in Korea. Today it's cooler, rainy and my first class has an absent kid making it a one-on-one English lesson for two hours.

However, today I'm working through an epiphany that yesterday spawned, trying to figure out how to make all my todays jealous of their tomorrows, be it through joy, heartache, gain or loss; there's a way to make it happen, to make every day better than the last: live it better.

We learn from all our yesterdays how to live today; we bring more to life with each tomorrow.
On that note, have a great day: make yesterday jealous and tomorrow better.

- Foster