Ain’t technology great? We can do so much with it. We can peer deep into space – all the way back to our universe’s beginning, in fact. You can see things so small that it’s hard to believe they exist. We can play Candy Crush, watch crazy cat videos and create believable AI pictures ‘til our hearts content for free!
(Wait… that last sentence sounds a lot like… me. Let’s move on.)
Seriously – the tech in our pockets and all around us is really incredible. It allows for so much good. And… and. It can really hold us back.
Worshipping… What?
One of the drawbacks of social media culture is the productization of ourselves. We set up stories – mostly through images and posts – that we want to people to ‘buy’ with their attention and, if we really think about, their approval.
We make decisions on vacations that focus on posts that will sway others to think of us a certain way rather than exploring what we are truly curious about and experiencing with our travel mates. We pose. We construct. Very little is actually what is going on but rather the story we want to tell not to ourselves but to others.
It leads us all closer and closer to the idea that the shot must be perfect, that the words must be perfect that we… must be perfect.
Y’all, that’s not us. And while some will argue that has been one among us who reached perfection in the human condition, the odds are really, really not great that you and I will get there.
But yet, rather than worshiping Yaweh or Buddha or God or something larger and greater than ourselves, our collective behavior and choices scream that we are very close to worshipping… perfection in ourselves. And that, in the words of David Foster Wallace, will tear us up.
(Parents, it’s an incredible read and something I talk about – though not in so many words – around the campfire with our campers.)
Perfectly Imperfect
Just as important, the chase for personal perfection holds us back.
Here’s a list of statements we often say to ourselves in those quiet moment: “I’ll be happy when…”, “I’ll be worthy when…”, “I’ll be accepted when….”
Let me help you finish those. In this modern society, young (and not so young) people often complete the above statements with ‘I’m perfect’ or ‘it’s perfect.’
The ironic thing? Those who really are happy or feel worthy or are accepted aren’t even thinking about themselves. Instead, they accept their imperfections with grace and humor and humility. They think of others more than they think of themselves. The contribute to the greater good of their family, their classroom, their team, troop… or bunk.
As Shannon Alder has said, “There is no perfection, only beautiful versions of brokenness.” The pursuit of perfect is a great way to beat yourself up and stop you from actually flourishing and growing.
You want the good news about your imperfection? Everyone else is imperfect, too. And even better, your imperfections will line up perfectly with a lot of people. As C.S. Lewis has said,
Friendship … is born at the moment when one man says to another “What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . ..
You are perfectly imperfect. Rather than hiding these little foibles or eccentricities, recognize them, accept them and start contributing to the lives of those around you. You’ll get plenty of ‘likes’ that way. More than you can possibly imagine.
Have a great weekend, kiddos.
PS – How would I love you to answer those ‘when’ statements above? ‘…I decide to be so.’
