In a world fueled by the “scroll,” we are constantly bombarded with images of people who seem to have it better. We see the private jets, the perfect health, and the effortless success, and it’s easy to feel like we got the short end of the stick.
But after everything I’ve been through, I’ve realized something: It’s not better; it’s just different.
We all enter this world with a unique hand of cards. Some hands look like aces; others look like a bust. But for every “rags to riches” story we celebrate, there’s a “riches to rags” story lurking in the shadows. Circumstances don’t determine the quality of your life,your perspective does.
Changing the Narrative on “Poor Aaron”
If you looked at my medical chart, you’d probably feel sorry for me. Cancer. Two liver transplants. Kidney disease. A list of “issues” longer than a CVS receipt. I get it all the time: “Poor Aaron, he’s had such a tough go of it.”
But here’s the plot twist: Those hardships are the best thing that ever happened to me.
How can a health crisis be a “good thing”? Because those challenges forced me to evolve. They gave me a perspective that a “perfect” life never could. I’m not a victim of my circumstances; I’m the victor because of my response to them. I’m not “better” than anyone else, but I am different.
The History of the “Different”
Pop culture worships the “G.O.A.T.s,” but if you look closely at the icons we admire, they weren’t trying to be “better” versions of someone else. They were radically, unapologetically different.
• In Sports: Muhammad Ali didn’t just box; he danced and spoke poetry, breaking the mold of the “quiet athlete.”
• In Art: Jean-Michel Basquiat took “different” to the streets and changed the high-art world forever.
• In Music: Prince and David Bowie refused to be categorized by gender, genre, or expectation.
• In Innovation: Steve Jobs and Elon Musk succeeded because they saw the world through a lens that others called “crazy.”
These people weren’t “better” at following the rules; they were different enough to change them.
Stop Chasing “Better”
We spend so much energy trying to be “better” than the person next to us. We want the better car, the better body, the better status. But “better” is a race with no finish line.
God didn’t make you to be “better.” He made you to be different.
My health issues don’t define me, but they refined me. I am a man in a constant state of “becoming.” I’m forever working on myself, leaning into the unique, messy, and complicated path I’ve been given.
When you stop comparing your life to a perceived “better” and start embracing your “different,” you unlock a level of fulfillment most people can’t even imagine.
So, stop trying to fit in. Start being what you were made to be: Different.
Pop’s Culture 