There is a universal saying amongst today’s young adults. And that saying is “Perfect.” I’m perfectly sure that nobody or anything is ever truly perfect.
When I order an entrée at a restaurant and the server says “perfect,” I think to myself, how could that be? What if I change my mind and opt for lasagna rather than meatballs? Do the meatballs and my once-skilled decision get demoted less than perfect?
One thing I work on and try to impart to others is that it’s “perfectly” acceptable to be okay, not bad, or pretty good. I don’t like hanging around “perfect” people. They make me feel, well, so imperfect.
I’m always a bit thrown off when I ask someone how they are doing in passing, and they respond with something along the lines of: “Fantastic, terrific, awesome, couldn’t be better.” I think woah- what are they on, or what are they denying? I quickly turn to see if it’s their shoes, or scent that keeps their terrific-ness intact.
Anxiety is at an all-time high in this country. Anxiety is uncertainty. It’s the unknown. How often does the future (the unknown) poison our present mood and outlook for today? And “what if” we’re not prepared to handle what’s next? Well, you’ll never know till you cross that bridge.
The laws of physics are both exact and unpredictable. There’s no guarantee that we won’t be hit by lightning or sucked into a sinkhole. Worrying about the future does not bring this under our control- just think of how some of us have become such good worriers nowadays. I once read that “worry” is humankind’s civilized form of voodoo. Instead of worrying, imagine spending that same amount of time developing, to then install a basic faith in our capacity to handle whatever’s next.
We can learn to stock, discard, and re-stock our inner resources so whatever is next is just that. We can’t climb a ladder and peer into the future to be sure that life is safe and sound.
I say: bring it on. Whatever next, is well, what’s next. We can handle it since we’ve already made it through 100% of our worst days. Not a bad percentage.
