Jose Marti once stated that a selfish man is a thief.

This line of expression has been going around a lot and I thought I would share my thoughts.

So: A selfish man is a thief.

A selfish person can be selfish for any reasons, with mainly the benefits for themselves. I think selfish is often a negative connotation. Honestly, the first words that come to my mind when I think 'selfish' is 'greed'. Selfish can come in many forms. One is basically selfish when they put themselves before others; when they wish to gain before others.

At times, it frustrates me to find that there are extremely selfish people in the world, but that doesn't make me any less guilty of being a selfish human being either. Depending on what people are selfish for, I don't blame them. Life is simply a paradox. I often hear that 'the world is about giving and sharing. We all should make peace, and support each other.' But when the going gets tough, and people are suffering, or breaking down, one of the common words of advice is "do it for yourself." People can be selfless and selfish. It's not like a person is forced to the extremes. If you think your goal is priority, then you should go ahead and grab it because no one else is going to get it for you. In this case, the act of selfishness shouldn't be shunned. I admit those people who so bravely step forward and take control of their lives and future ambitions.

Although I may be speaking kindly of selfishness, it doesn't mean it can be "good" in all it's entirety. The statement was that "A selfish man is a thief". I agree. By becoming selfish or behaving selfishly, you are robbing from nature, from society, from the very speck of this universe. Selfishness comes with a price, but those who continue to work blindly (or not) aren't the ones paying for it, instead the people around them are. It is the sad truth, but that's how life works. A more clear example of this would be someone wishing to become an author or publish a story in the school paper. By working towards this goal, this person is robbing those of possibly less potential to win a spot in the school paper or get hired as an author. When this person has won, someone else has lost. It might not be a substantial loss, but it still is what it is.


Life contains a handful of lessons and although some mistakes can be corrected, the other are inevitable. In the end, it is up to you to trust what is reasonable and not to judge others by their choices. Yes, there are bad choices. No, not all those bad choices can be determined by you alone. Life is seen through different aspects and sometimes we just have to accept what is given.


P.S. I tried to keep this formal. Using the word "you" seemed too personal, but I did throw it out there a couple times. Idk. It sounds weird otherwise.