The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. That’s the colloquialism, isn’t it? And so true. While I’ve kept busy since taking the bar exam in many ways, I still feel unsettled, like I’m still on pause until the next step. But I have no idea when that next step will be, or even what it will be. I end up restless, feeling as if time is slipping through my fingers and there’s no way to hang on.

But I know that as soon as I finally reach that “next step,” a part of me will find myself missing these days, where my schedule was flexible, rent was free, and stress was low.

I think that’s where contentment comes in. Because the fact of the matter is, sometimes the grass is greener on the other side. For an unemployed person, having a job with a steady income and health insurance is a step up. For a person who is overworked and losing sleep (OWLS?), time to do volunteer work, community service, or other endeavours that bring personal meaning, as well as enjoy recreation and relaxation would be an improvement. It’s all a matter of perspective, I guess.

But contentment helps us appreciate where we are planted now. I don’t think contentment means we act as if we have arrived. Not at all. Rather, it says, “This is enough for now. Maybe more or different is possible in the future, but I can be happy with what I have now.” Content.

So while my quest to stop being a statistic continues, I’ll remain content, appreciating the greenness of the grass where I am now.

Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ  who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13, NKJV.