Envy is not a bad four letter word

I scurried out for a quick surf this morning at my local spot. Just as in the case of restaurants, where the ambiance is as important as the food, the vibe in the water is almost, sometimes more important than the condition of the waves themselves.

I love to surf with pals. I also love surfing alone, especially when it is quiet and only the sounds of nature can be heard. But occasionally it’s fun to eavesdrop on others’ conversations in the water. Such was the scenario today.

The lulls between sets allowed for the two men in their 30s to chat away within ear shot.

We all couldn’t help but watch a gaggle of dudes zip around on e foils. This is the relatively new activity that involves being towed along by an autonomous motorized thingie while the participant stands on a short board equipped with a long rudder. The physics of it, allow one to glide above the water. It’s the kind of thing that is novel looking enough that tourists walking along the beach will capture phone video of. (Here’s a visual).

One of the surfers remarked to his friend “that is so stupid.” The friend replied “totally. You may as well be on a power boat. What’s even the point?”

They then chatted about a video they had seen of a guy who caught a giant fish while on a manually operated sail board. “Now that is manly.”

A few minutes passed with no waves to be caught and the original commenter then said of the e foilers “actually, maybe it’s kind of fun?”

What a turn of events!

I wondered to myself about the role of envy and admired the surfers about face, or perhaps his humility to acknowledge that he was envious, at least in that moment. The hydro foilers were not sitting around waiting for a small wave, but instead were seemingly enjoying themselves on this late summer day.

Envy is not necessarily “bad” and in fact, the feeling within us can unlock great insight into our unconscious desires. It’s when envy veers from discontent towards resentfulness that is cause for concern. If we can identify discontent and get close to it, there’s opportunity to either resolve it or move towards acceptance.

For the record, I think the hydro foil activity seems silly, and it’s not for me. But maybe my mind will change if I am ever to try it!

Where do you experience envy in your life? Towards whom and for what?