In 2025 let’s let go of ‘perfection’

Perfection. We pretend to love it, but we despise it.

It’s the most miserable state: inhuman, unforgiving, untouchable. There is only one way for it to go from that point. How can something perfect become more perfect than perfect? It cannot. But it can become imperfect.

The perfect human body, the perfect night’s sleep, the purest diet: living not for life, but living for perfection.

And it will, make no mistake. And so we teeter at that terrifying point where we wait in anticipation of the fall, knowing that sooner or later the perfection that we hate — but pretend to love — will die.

Table talk

But oh, thank God for that moment. That first scratch on the table. That first blemish. That first tear. That first problem. All those mistakes release us from that awful vise, that wretched conundrum of hopelessly hoping for perfection. Dying to keep everything just right. Giving anything to make sure it all stays just as it should be.

We may pretend to mourn the mistake, but deep down we thank God for the blemish. We thank God for releasing us from that prison of perfection.

This isn’t really about a table. This is about life. It’s about everything. We, in our era, are stuck in this futile pursuit of perfection.

It’s part of consumerism, of course. When something gets dinged up, we can just go buy another one. If we don’t have the cash, we can bust out the card. We can’t have that ding, can we? It would look so much nicer if it weren’t there. We need a new one, and a perfect one is just within reach.

It’s also about social media. We look at our phones and see perfection. We see beautiful beaches and beautiful people. We see lives that we wish were ours. And my, how ours are so imperfect.

“Look at how clean that house is in that reel. Ours is a wreck.” Now we are unhappy. We thought we had enough, but we don’t. We thought it was nice, but it isn’t. We need it to be perfect.

Off-camera chaos

And of course, it’s all a facade. In social media, we never see what’s off camera. The clothes on the floor, the pile on the couch, the dust in the corner, the garbage bags next to the door. We are all part of the problem, too. See? Perpetrators and victims at the same time.

It’s also about the quest to live forever. Extended life spans. Health monitoring and obsessive testing. If I get all the numbers just right, I can live forever. No one really says that last part, but there is some implication there. The perfect human body, the perfect night’s sleep, the purest diet: living not for life, but living for perfection. Worship and fear. That hated perfection.

How many people never live the life they wish to live because they are afraid of failure? How many don’t take the chance? Make the move? Ask the girl? Do the thing?

How many people live their lives perpetually hedging every last bet? Only the safest option is the smart option. Best to live with fewer mistakes. Yes. That’s closer to perfection.

Bless this mess

What a prison. What a terrible thing. It is the anti-life, the anti-action. Benjamin Franklin said, “In this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes.” I say, “In this world, nothing is certain but chaos and drama.” Or, to put it another way, “In this world, nothing is certain but imperfection.”

Coming to grips with this — accepting this as reality — is the first step to actually living. Living not in fear of mistakes, but living in pursuit of a life that is yours. We only have one, after all.

I know that sounds trite, but it’s true. It’s not going to be perfect; it’s going to be messy, there are going to be ups and downs, twists and turns, and that’s okay. It’s all a part of it. And that’s the beauty of it.

Overcoming the modern addiction to perfection is key to taking control of one’s life. It’s strange that letting go (of perfection) is key to taking control (of what matters). It’s about properly ordering things. It’s about coming to accept the reality of life.

In the past, this reality was much harder to avoid. Perfection? Try survival. But for many of us in our technologically coddled society, it might take a conscious effort to see through the illusion.

That new table and that first scratch. It’s hard before the blemish, but it’s easy after that. And it only gets easier. With every scratch, perfection fades, far off in the distance. It’s there in the rearview mirror, getting smaller and smaller now. Soon you can’t see it any more. Goodbye.

Finally, we are left with life. Beautifully imperfect life.