Monday, December 1, 2008

Perfection is the Enemy of the Good


Um, Yeah.
Originally uploaded by whatstepheats
And here's a rather extreme example. As far as I know, this sign became a humorous office oddity which explains why it wasn't corrected. I guess this would be an example of 'perfection being the enemy of the good' gone bad.

I believe Voltaire's quote literally translated is, "The better is the enemy of the good".
It's something I think about often, having a thread of perfection sewn into the fabric of my being. Before I became so enlightened, I allowed my desire for perfection to hold me back. More than a few times in my years on this planet I've managed to convince myself that it's pointless to even try my hand at something because surely the outcome wouldn't be perfect. I've sat on my ass wishing for a magical guru to come take me under his wing and show me all the secrets of my unlocked talents. Tap that shit. It's a potential stranglehold on one's life.

While I am far from relieved of this affliction, at least I am aware of it. I can see it festering and most times get past that tendency to give up and burrow my head like an ostrich. A little OCD is in the mix as well, adding to my tendency to get stuck. But with age (!) came some wisdom and now the voices in my head urge me forward with a little more forcefulness and success. I remind myself that I am smart, capable, and strong and that it can be rewarding and meaningful to just try.

Of course, though my demons and angels remain in balance on a good day, not all days are good!

I suppose it doesn't help that the Anglicized pronunciation of my last name rhymes with 'inertia'.

Maybe perfection is in the imperfections anyway.

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