Thought provoking post. I can relate to some of your frustrated aspirations.
in regards to writing, I agree with you
whenever I say the word "writer" I think about people who wrote and published books, who are recognized for their work and who maybe even make a living writing.
I mostly do academic writing, critical theory, cultural studies, and the like, but I have tried to write fiction and poetry and some people have liked it, but still I can think of myself as a writer.
I think that some things we admire in others and can't get for ourselves have also to do with natural talent.
Take singing, for instance. I'd 've lived to sing. I admire singers and dancer. I can dance, basic stuff to get a long in a party, but I never tried to become a dancer and I can't sing, period!
I know people who got into some choir or singing group to learn some of the fundamentals and "educated" their voices, but singing is a natural gift and not all of us have it. That's a realization I can live with.
Most young kids suffer a lot because of their inability to undertand how this talent thing works and their unwillingness to accept their limitations.
It 's just a matter of exploring what we are good for and thn devoting all our energy to developing that talent.
Natural talent does play a role as well, like in your example. Singing is something a lot of people would love to do, but can't because their voices are not fit for that activity.
Sometimes I also think we're more or less ignorant towards what we have, and we always want to do what others are doing.
For example, even though I can write fairly easily and it usually takes me very little time to write articles, I am still jealous of those who can draw and create amazing pieces of arts.
Sure, I have a talent of my own, but creating characters and environments using a skill like drawing is awesome.
And I'm sure there are a lot of artists out there who can draw really well, who ignore their skill and are jealous of those who can write really well, or those who can code or model 3D characters using a software like Maya.
It may have to do with natural talent, but I think it also has something to do with wanting something we don't have, something we consider cooler than our own ability to do something.
Yes, there is something about being human that makes us be illogical, irrational, impossible to satisfy. Even global conflicts end up being the result of a leader capricious desire for a land he deems more attractive or profitable than his. We may have plenty and yet we want more.
We tend to associate crime with poverty, but what to make of rich kids who commit crimes? In theory, they have it all, and yet, they feel the lack something and fill that void with stupidity; it may also apply to celebrities.
The grass always look greener in the other's yard.
That's exactly why I think we should always know what we want, and, most importantly, what's enough.
I realized that when I started making plans for the future. Usually, when you imagine yourself having a bunch of money at some point in your life, like most people do, you think about owning a big house, with a cool car, awesome clothes and expensive food.
The key is to make sure you actually desire those things, and that those things will actually make you happy.
If you cannot do that, then you'll constantly chase something bigger and better hoping it will bring you happiness, and it never will unless you know, more or less, what's best for you.
In my case, I realized that having a big house and an expensive car won't make me happy. I don't like driving that much, and I like small and really organized houses a lot more. I also like healthy food, so I'm not gonna go crazy for anything expensive. And clothes... I like simple and cheap things.
So, I'm not gonna waste years of my life saving money to buy big expensive houses/cars/food/clothes, and instead focus on buying exactly what I'd like.
Wanting more is within us, and we're always gonna want something else, because, as you said, the grass always looks greener in other people's yards. But knowing, more or less, what you want, instead of blindly wishing to have what others have expecting the same happiness to come to you, could help you live a more relaxed life, one in which you'll have focus and a clear goal.