“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” ~ Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
“Our human perfection is actually defined by our imperfections.” ~Sheryl Schlameuss Berger
You may likely be familiar with the first quote (the second is pure “moi.”) Perhaps you believe that we are highly spiritual and have active and multiple karmic lives — or maybe that the hereafter is one expansive, peaceful heaven. Maybe you don’t believe in any of that — but the reality of the now is that we are all here having a very grand, panoramic human experience!
Our lives are filled with complexity and a broad spectrum of emotions, challenges and accomplishments. For some people, you may feel that you are constantly striving (or perhaps struggling) to be in a state as near as possible to what you might perceive as spiritual wholeness. Yes, we are having a human experience, but can’t I/we be a more perfect reflection of the Creator, an extension of Source?
Some of this can trickle down to developing a balance in one’s sense of perfectionism in everyday life (the very mundane, “earthly” kind of perfectionistic thinking.) It means letting go of some of the control over every aspect of one’s surroundings. Of course, I believe in the concept of accepting responsibility for one’s life, but it is impossible to have responsibility over everyone else’s life — specifically those in the circle of close family relationships.
When my children were younger, I chose to look away from lots of mess and clutter and just shut the doors to their rooms and let them be. My inner self happens to prefer a relatively clear and organized environment, so looking the other way was not always easy to do. But having a perfectly clean house was no where near as important as having a perfectly joyful, loving home. I am still doing the inner work of letting go of that overly-perfectionistic attitude in my life (my husband will likely tell you that I still am a bit demanding regarding getting tasks done in the house!)
On a different note: are you able to accept your human imperfections including your physical imperfections? Are you comfortable with your body image? Can you easily accept that as a part of the physical realm you are not necessarily going to be as glamorous as the models that grace the magazine covers? Abraham (of Abraham-Hicks) often describes our physicality as “magnificent physical bodies” — referring to all of us — not just the ones who look like those models! It’s essential to be kind to yourself and feel joyful about your physical appearance — or at least accepting.
What I’m trying to say is “Be more than okay with yourself. Love yourself!” Respect who you are, both in your humanness and your spirituality. And don’t expect perfection from those around you either — love them for their own uniqueness.
So we have to relax in our ideas about perfection, yet be open to positive changes. Don’t sit back, procrastinating about life, letting your reality be chock-full of unmanageable chaos. And don’t be doing the woe-is-me thing. Strive to move forward to be your best future self.
I believe that we are all happiest when we achieve that harmonious, good-feeling balance between our humanness and the perfection that we all reach for. Our humanness defines us — those jovial, less-than-perfect, but oh-so-fascinating, lovable beings that we are at the core.
Affirmations:
- I am calm, relaxed and at peace with the world and myself.
- I accept my imperfections and I am supremely happy with who I am.
- My body is a reflection of my thoughts, and I think about my body in a loving way.
