Why I had to cut a relationship out of my life

You've probably noticed that there isn't a new Snippets and Soundbites this Friday. Due to the team's travel schedule, it just didn't happen today. Never fear, though! Snippets will be back next Friday!

While Snippets may not be new, we do have a new post from Emily, ec's production editor. Check out her thoughts as spurred by the "Toxic Relationships" article on page 20 of the current issue.

“Reading Jennifer McCaman’s article on toxic relationships made me put on my thinking cap. I tried to recall friends in my life who’d had a toxic effect on me (or worse, friends on whom I’d had a toxic effect). Deciding not to stray too far into the past, I realized that there is one relationship I’ve definitely had to cut out of my life due its negative influence: my ties to the TV show “The Fabulous Life” on VH1. Maybe you’ve seen this foray into all things lavish, but I hope you haven’t (and won’t! Read on for why . . .)
“In college, it seemed like this show was always on. I’d come in from class, finish my homework, then watch some TV. Flipping through the channels, this show would suck me in as it explored the “fabulous” life of someone rich and famous. After watching how the celebrities spend/waste their money—A designer purse that costs thousands? I’ll take ten, one in every color—I would feel deprived and jealous, wondering why I didn’t have (and probably never would) what the stars seemed to take for granted.
“So I decided that the woe-is-me attitude and sulky outlook sparked by the show was reason enough to stop watching it. And I like myself and my life a whole lot better when I’m not comparing it to the ridiculous lives of celebrities! It wasn’t fun, and it wasn’t easy to force myself to change the channel or leave the room if my friends decided to watch it. But it was better than being cynical and temporarily depressed when I compared my life to the life of someone rich and famous.
“Take it from me, it’s not just people who can be toxic. You have to look carefully at EVERYTHING that is part of your life to determine what effect it has on you. As 1 Thessalonians 5:21 says, “Test all things. Hold on to what is good.”
—Emily