A Witty Title.

The issue is not the having of the mountain. The issue is that of looking down on those that do not, when a mountain is not "all that".

Theres nothing absolutly wrong with having the mountain, but theres nothing absolutly wrong with not having one either.
 

I like Talen Lee's point, but I think it's great that you can see the danger you fall into of looking down on other people who are different. I struggle with that too, but recognising it means you can take a step back and learn to be humble.

You're proud of being intelligent and you're proud of examining your life. You're proud of thinking and you're proud of being who you are.

Maybe proud isn't the right word, but rather thankful to God for the blessings he's provided. I guess as long as you focus on that, and work out how to best use your gifts to serve, there's really no problem.
 

I might mope if I'd realised that I thought less of short people simply because they were shorter than me. I think that's the point here.
 

Exactly Lara.
 

That's a good question. Is being intelligent different to being tall? Someone who is tall is not superior to someone who is short, except perhaps if they are basketball players. Is the ability to run fast superior to the lack of that ability? I guess it depends on what is valued by a particular cultural context. From a Christian perspective, God gives different gifts to different people. If we are blessed with intelligence, this doesn't mean that we are superior to someone who has a different gift, such as music or organisational skills or hospitality. What matters is how we use our gifts and that we don't boast, because whatever we have comes from God.
 

Firstly, I'm pretty much on the same page as Talen Lee here I think.

Slightly OT, Talen Lee: Seriously I think the question of the value of intellect and reasoning is one only stupid people would try to defend *looks at Lara*. I think the sarcasm of it may have been lost on her. Being intelligent is very different to being tall, how someone may be applying that intelligence that could perhaps be related to characteristics like height.

Well that's not the point, sticking to the topic at hand..

"Never realising that my mountain is a prison, and I look like a fool."
Kinda pointless thing to say isn't it? Obviously by making this post you're realising what a fool you are?

The next thing I find odd is .. well .. the whole thing really. Here you are making a point about what exactly? What is your point?

The post basically says, "I am proud. I am trapped by my pride. Other people see this. I don't see it myself. That's my problem, what's yours?"

As I said, I think Talen Lee is right:
"We see a man pointing at a molehill and saying 'Oh, my MOUNTAIN!'" But I'd go a little further, and say that the man does in fact look like a fool, and is also shouting, "Look at me! Look at me! Aren't I so smart for seeing MY MOUNTAIN!".. And is still pointing at that molehill..

Pride isn't a dirty word. Take pride in what your are good at. The mountain isn't made of pride, it's made of arrogance. You can be proud of your strengths without being arrogant. You can be confident in the things you do well, without looking down on others for not doing them as well as you.

The problem /is/ the having of the mountain. As without the mountain you are not putting yourself in a position to look down on others. Your problem here is that you like your mountain, despite your complaints to the contrary, your mountain makes you feel better about yourself by comparison. A happy, secure person is content with themselves and their abilities without having to measure that against other people. You don't need to be better than others to be worth something.
 

The difference here is that were not just talking about pride in what I do, but pride in being ‘better’ than others.

The big step here is that we move from an absolute field (Yes what I do is valuable) to a more dynamic one. One where we are trying to say “Look how much ‘better’ I am than so and so”, rather than just, "I am good".

I can accept that I am good. It’s hard, but I manage it. What I really struggle with is believing I am better. Not that I find that too hard, but the reverse. It’s too easy.

I’m different, an individual, I’m me. And what I consider the best is not the be all and end all of scales. It’s my set of scales. Ultimately, there are a huge number of scales all of which weigh different things. I might be better than the majority of people on one particular set of scales. If you could force everyone to only consider foreign language subjects for the HSC then the linguistic geniuses suddenly appear much better students. If you can rig the election, it’s much easier to win it. This doesn’t make me better than them. Just a better X.

(Talen, cf this recent article on SCG about better. I think the point I’m trying to make actually aligns very well with it. Better is relative, better depends on what you’re measuring. There are times when squire is playable... ok I lie…. But you get my point anyway.)

Now lets go the next step. Let us talk about just X. Who am I to judge wether I am a better X than Bob. Yes in some cases its obvious, but for it to be a marked thing, I need to not just be a better X then the average person or the underachievers. I need to be a better X than Frank. When frank is really good at X.

It’s fine to say I am good at X. I don’t think it’s fair to look down on others for not being as good at X as me. Just because they can’t juggle knives blindfolded, or even if they aren’t as good at computer programming as me, it doesn’t make me a better person then them. Just a different one.
 

It’s fine to say I am good at X. I don’t think it’s fair to look down on others for not being as good at X as me. Just because they can’t juggle knives blindfolded, or even if they aren’t as good at computer programming as me, it doesn’t make me a better person then them. Just a different one.

Then if you believe that, what the hell are you doing sitting up on a Mountain? Shut the hell up and get your story straight before you open your mouth to the world.

Pride in what we do is fine. Pride in being better than others is arrogance. You are arrogant. You take comfort in being better than someone else, and at the same time feel guilty for it.. Well there's not a damn thing we can do for you about it. You need to come to terms with yourself in isolation. End of Story. You say you do, "It’s hard, but I manage it." but I don't believe you. If you were content with yourself without comparison we wouldn't be being subjected to your morbid obsession with self deprecation.

You are /not/ content to be good in isolation of comparison with others. /That/ is your problem, not pride.