Perfection is in the eye of the beholder

I've been thinking about perfection. We all can pick out the perceived flaws in our lives, ourselves, others, our communities, states, and nation. We do it everyday. We are good at it. Finding the flaws in the things in and around us. It's in the complaints we make everyday.

We strive for perfection despite the flaws we perceive to see. We want the perfect marriage, children, home, job, friends, and family. Let me ask you, what is perfection? As we strive for the perfect, well everything, is it our perfect we are looking for or what others believe perfection is?

Let me give you an example. A friend of mine is what I picture as the perfect mom. Support of her kids and now grandkids, respected by her kids, never raised her voice, and managed to keep a neat organized house and hot meals on the table. When Andrew was born I wanted to be just like her.

Just like admiring my friend, my parents had what I picture as the perfect marriage. They never argued, they supported each other, and backed each other when dealing with us kids, always on the same page. What they have, I wanted for myself, even when I was eighteen and got married the first time.

The military provided me with what I thought was the perfect career. The I work I did satisfied me career wise in ways I never thought possible. When I got out of the military, it wasn't because of the work, I felt I couldn't put service before self anymore. More than the work, I miss the people. Getting back to that type of satisfaction has been a long journey.

Our idea of perfect isn't the same as someone else. My friend still appears to be the perfect mom, and unlike her my house is often chaotic, noisy, and sometimes calm and quiet. I won't ever be the mom she is, but I tell my kids everyday I love them, support them, encourage them to strive for their dreams, and I am the mean mom when I need to be. I'm not the perfect mom for a lot of people, but I try to be the perfect mom for me and my kids. Growing up, my parents gave us the perfect example of marriage, and now that we are older, we know that my parents argue, don't always see eye to eye, and that marriage is hard work. My past marriage was none of the things I wanted in a marriage. My current one is perfect with just enough flaws to keep us growing together as husband and wife, and as mom and dad. As for my career, well it's still a journey, but I'm working on it

What we think is perfect is often what makes us happy. Are you striving for your perfect or someone else's perception of perfect?

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