There's something I want to discuss
A single word...
The word “perfect”
To be honest
I don’t actually know what the word means
Nor do I have any idea how it could ever be applied to art
But people try to...
I think its a word that's been implanted in our minds
like a poisonous seed
By people that were frightened by it
when it was planted in them
“Perfect” is a word that I hear
used a lot by students and teachers alike
Its a concept that's been drilled into everyone
through education and society as a whole
If I remembered hearing it from my family during childhood
it wouldn't be so odd
But I don’t remember it
because they didn't use it
They always encouraged me to be the best I could be!
I only remember hearing "perfect" spouted from other adults
never holding themselves or their kids to the same high standards
It didn't make sense to me
This is what gave me an ulcer at age 9
I wasn't allowed to figure out how to be happy myself
because I had to make other people happy
I was a slave
I was sick almost every day for a year straight
Doubled over in gut wrenching pain
This was a paradox to me
The people that were supposed to love me for who I was
In School
In Church
In Town
Were trying to control me by putting their fear in me
How can you develop trust when there is fear?
How can you develop friendships?
I then questioned why hypocrisy existed
in those I was supposed to look up to
Those I was supposed to trust
I always questioned
And that's when I got in trouble
Still do
And that is why I had a hard time trusting authority
Still do
But I never want any of our kids to ever have to go through that
So how do you feel about the word “perfect?”
Did your parents ever tell you to be “perfect"as a kid?
How did it make you feel then?
And do you think “perfection” exists?
Because I don’t
And something tells me you don’t either
I think it may exist for a split moment
on a multiple choice quiz
with tiny bubbles
that one can fill in with a dull No. 2 pencil
which then is graded by a machine
And if you are able to fill in the right amount of bubbles
in the right order
then
and only then
have you reached “perfection.”
Hooray!
That is also how education and personal worth is gauged until we graduate college
which may be why our 20’s are such a crazy roller coaster ride of "figuring it out"
Why?
Because there are no multiple choice answers in life
None
So why assess human worth
with a list of marked boxes corresponding to attributes
like describing Slaves on an auction block?
There are only empty paragraphs in life which you have to fill
in freehand
in block print or in cursive
Your interpretation of this life is waiting to be spelled out…
That's reality
And if we all have our own interpretation of reality
then how can anything ever be perfect
if it is also being judged by someone else
that has their own interpretation?
Because in turn
that is not even reality
They are all interpretations of interpretations of the reality
So in reality
how can “perfection” exist?
“Perfection” is not a naturally occurring item in nature
Ever
Everything is flawed
It is a wonder that anything actually functions
But that is also the beauty of it all
The very definition of “perfect” is
FINISHED
COMPLETE
FLAWLESS
I am not any of those words
nor would I call myself "perfect" in any form
I don’t think you would call yourself any of those things either
At least I hope not
Love is not perfect
Democracy is not “perfect”
because it is carried out by homosapians
Who are not “perfect"
So when we attempt to hold our kids up to this ideal of “perfection”
I think we then again become no better than those
that physically abuse them
that verbally abuse them
that sexually abuse them
that oppress them on a daily basis
There in our mission statement in life is violated
We have created inequity
We have created inequality
Why?
Because the word “perfect” creates a constant less than mentality
It predates the 19th century birth of the Prussian factory school setting:
uniformity
productivity (input vs. output)
and oppression.
DO EXACTLY WHAT I TELL YOU
NO QUESTIONS
Copy
Paste
By using the word “perfect”
we become the dominator
and the kids
the oppressed
It forces a soul to strive for something that is never attainable
creating a constant feeling of neverending failure
By using the word
That also means that we will constantly be disappointed
We will never get what we want
Ever
So "Perfect" isn't possible
By using the word
everyone involved becomes miserable and defensive
No wonder our societies are continuously at war
No wonder "I" must have what "they" have
No wonder we have to be better than everyone else in everything
"Perfect" is an offensive word
It attacks
and leaves no room to feel and respond
We aren't allowed to
We just have to do
To be
"Perfect"
So we go on the defensive
to try to feel
more than less than
By making others
less than
But...
we can only be the best we can be
in any given moment
Maybe ...
I slept horribly last night
Maybe ...
my loved one made me feel less than awesome as I walked out the front door
Maybe ...
I feel fat today
Maybe ...
I have the flu
Maybe ...
I feel downright fucking lonely
Whatever the case may be
I think having the Courage and the Resilience
(I capitalize them because I believe them to be proper nouns)
to respond positively in the given moment
as opposed to reacting from scar tissue dictated by the past
is as good as it gets
thats wisdom
Also by admitting our faults openly
and learning from each other
together
in truth
is when I feel my fullest
Is this what it means to be human?
Maybe
Respecting our very own humanity and in turn witness to the humanity around us?
Everyone acknowledging everyone’s imperfection?
that is compassion
Can you imagine a world like that?
If we accept our faults
and those of others
then maybe we have actually reached “perfection”
Check it out!
The word IMPERFECT is actually I’M PERFECT
And maybe if everyone acknowledged this paradox in our society
we would all be better off
the constant infinite cycle of change
thats all there is
breath
keep moving
Otherwise
we are dead and finished
Karma means “action”…
and its eternal
The Neverending Story!
“Perfection” is “inaction”
because the loop has been
signed
sealed
delivered
and placed on the shelf
like a tacky knick knack.
I don’t want to acquire dust like some archaic ideal
I yearn to actively make myself and the world a better place than I found it
That is the paradox of life
The dance
Optimists take one step forward to take one back
We have to keep moving
with utter resilience
to make ourselves better
learning from our mistakes
And that in turn
will make everyone else better around us
So it starts with you
Will you join me in getting rid of the word “perfect?”
Let's see what it does
Can you imagine the change it could make
In foreign affairs
In business
In our fellow wo man
and in our kids?
I think it may help change everything we think we know
Our reality
for the better
But we'll never know
unless we try
A single word...
The word “perfect”
To be honest
I don’t actually know what the word means
Nor do I have any idea how it could ever be applied to art
But people try to...
I think its a word that's been implanted in our minds
like a poisonous seed
By people that were frightened by it
when it was planted in them
“Perfect” is a word that I hear
used a lot by students and teachers alike
Its a concept that's been drilled into everyone
through education and society as a whole
If I remembered hearing it from my family during childhood
it wouldn't be so odd
But I don’t remember it
because they didn't use it
They always encouraged me to be the best I could be!
I only remember hearing "perfect" spouted from other adults
never holding themselves or their kids to the same high standards
It didn't make sense to me
This is what gave me an ulcer at age 9
I wasn't allowed to figure out how to be happy myself
because I had to make other people happy
I was a slave
I was sick almost every day for a year straight
Doubled over in gut wrenching pain
This was a paradox to me
The people that were supposed to love me for who I was
In School
In Church
In Town
Were trying to control me by putting their fear in me
How can you develop trust when there is fear?
How can you develop friendships?
I then questioned why hypocrisy existed
in those I was supposed to look up to
Those I was supposed to trust
I always questioned
And that's when I got in trouble
Still do
And that is why I had a hard time trusting authority
Still do
But I never want any of our kids to ever have to go through that
So how do you feel about the word “perfect?”
Did your parents ever tell you to be “perfect"as a kid?
How did it make you feel then?
And do you think “perfection” exists?
Because I don’t
And something tells me you don’t either
I think it may exist for a split moment
on a multiple choice quiz
with tiny bubbles
that one can fill in with a dull No. 2 pencil
which then is graded by a machine
And if you are able to fill in the right amount of bubbles
in the right order
then
and only then
have you reached “perfection.”
Hooray!
That is also how education and personal worth is gauged until we graduate college
which may be why our 20’s are such a crazy roller coaster ride of "figuring it out"
Why?
Because there are no multiple choice answers in life
None
So why assess human worth
with a list of marked boxes corresponding to attributes
like describing Slaves on an auction block?
There are only empty paragraphs in life which you have to fill
in freehand
in block print or in cursive
Your interpretation of this life is waiting to be spelled out…
That's reality
And if we all have our own interpretation of reality
then how can anything ever be perfect
if it is also being judged by someone else
that has their own interpretation?
Because in turn
that is not even reality
They are all interpretations of interpretations of the reality
So in reality
how can “perfection” exist?
“Perfection” is not a naturally occurring item in nature
Ever
Everything is flawed
It is a wonder that anything actually functions
But that is also the beauty of it all
The very definition of “perfect” is
FINISHED
COMPLETE
FLAWLESS
I am not any of those words
nor would I call myself "perfect" in any form
I don’t think you would call yourself any of those things either
At least I hope not
Love is not perfect
Democracy is not “perfect”
because it is carried out by homosapians
Who are not “perfect"
So when we attempt to hold our kids up to this ideal of “perfection”
I think we then again become no better than those
that physically abuse them
that verbally abuse them
that sexually abuse them
that oppress them on a daily basis
There in our mission statement in life is violated
We have created inequity
We have created inequality
Why?
Because the word “perfect” creates a constant less than mentality
It predates the 19th century birth of the Prussian factory school setting:
uniformity
productivity (input vs. output)
and oppression.
DO EXACTLY WHAT I TELL YOU
NO QUESTIONS
Copy
Paste
By using the word “perfect”
we become the dominator
and the kids
the oppressed
It forces a soul to strive for something that is never attainable
creating a constant feeling of neverending failure
By using the word
That also means that we will constantly be disappointed
We will never get what we want
Ever
So "Perfect" isn't possible
By using the word
everyone involved becomes miserable and defensive
No wonder our societies are continuously at war
No wonder "I" must have what "they" have
No wonder we have to be better than everyone else in everything
"Perfect" is an offensive word
It attacks
and leaves no room to feel and respond
We aren't allowed to
We just have to do
To be
"Perfect"
So we go on the defensive
to try to feel
more than less than
By making others
less than
But...
we can only be the best we can be
in any given moment
Maybe ...
I slept horribly last night
Maybe ...
my loved one made me feel less than awesome as I walked out the front door
Maybe ...
I feel fat today
Maybe ...
I have the flu
Maybe ...
I feel downright fucking lonely
Whatever the case may be
I think having the Courage and the Resilience
(I capitalize them because I believe them to be proper nouns)
to respond positively in the given moment
as opposed to reacting from scar tissue dictated by the past
is as good as it gets
thats wisdom
Also by admitting our faults openly
and learning from each other
together
in truth
is when I feel my fullest
Is this what it means to be human?
Maybe
Respecting our very own humanity and in turn witness to the humanity around us?
Everyone acknowledging everyone’s imperfection?
that is compassion
Can you imagine a world like that?
If we accept our faults
and those of others
then maybe we have actually reached “perfection”
Check it out!
The word IMPERFECT is actually I’M PERFECT
And maybe if everyone acknowledged this paradox in our society
we would all be better off
the constant infinite cycle of change
thats all there is
breath
keep moving
Otherwise
we are dead and finished
Karma means “action”…
and its eternal
The Neverending Story!
“Perfection” is “inaction”
because the loop has been
signed
sealed
delivered
and placed on the shelf
like a tacky knick knack.
I don’t want to acquire dust like some archaic ideal
I yearn to actively make myself and the world a better place than I found it
That is the paradox of life
The dance
Optimists take one step forward to take one back
We have to keep moving
with utter resilience
to make ourselves better
learning from our mistakes
And that in turn
will make everyone else better around us
So it starts with you
Will you join me in getting rid of the word “perfect?”
Let's see what it does
Can you imagine the change it could make
In foreign affairs
In business
In our fellow wo man
and in our kids?
I think it may help change everything we think we know
Our reality
for the better
But we'll never know
unless we try
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