how to be a loser

I entered a contest last week.  Not a big one, just a small photo contest.  There were over 500 entries and my entry was probably not my best photo, but one that had some meaning to me.

steve as gulliver in the land of lilliput

So they had to choose from over 500 and then let the public vote on the finalists.  I waited until yesterday and then excitedly went to the website hoping I had been a finalist.

I wasn't.  At first, to be honest, I was disappointed.  Then I felt slighted.  Then I was a bit angry.  Then I realized how ridiculous those feelings were.  All those emotions and thoughts took about thirty seconds to process through my brain.

It was a contest, not a judgement on my vision, creativity, or talent.  I was still the same person.  Nothing had really changed.  I just wasn't chosen, for whatever reason.  And the main reason I paint, and take photographs, and write this blog is still there, still sound.  And that reason is me.  I do all the things I do because of an inner urge, or drive, or whatever you want to call it, for ME.  That other people get some pleasure or enjoyment out of what I create is an added bonus.  I have always enjoyed making others laugh or bringing them pleasure.  But even if no one looked or said a thing about anything I do, I would still do it.

So I am not really a loser.  You can only be a loser if you see yourself as a loser.  What you are, the essence of who you are, comes from inside you, not from the judgement or views of others.  Let what others say be a chance to learn and grow, and take what anyone says, positive or negative, with a grain of salt.  Because no one can really judge another person.  We all see life through different eyes, with different standards.

There are no losers, really.  And after all, a contest is just a contest.