Consistently Imperfect

Blogging makes me a little nervous. I used to think that blogs were just another way to prove how interesting one's life was - always perfect, photographed with a nice camera, where dinner is always delicious, the children are always smiling and the house is always tidy. I somehow assumed that these people's lives were exactly as they portrayed and it made me feel as if I was missing something. My photography, cooking and most recently, mom skills were not enough by comparison. But, did you know that NO ONE shares what their life is really like on the internet? I like to think that if they did, we would see lots of photos of people on couches, watching Netflix with a $5 Little Caesar's pizza and a pile of laundry in the corner - all photographed slightly out of focus with out-dated overhead lighting.

I recently took on the job of painting new menu boards for Sammy's in Rexburg. I've never considered myself an artist. More on that in a later post, I'm sure. I cried and procrastinated for weeks about this huge project - "So many people are going to see these signs! What if they aren't perfect?" Sammy's original artist, a man named Colt, is a professional. A darn good (and expensive) one. At first glance, his signs looked perfect. But after weeks of staring, I realized that his work wasn't perfect at all. Words weren't centered, the word "tortilla" was missing the second "T" and the swirls had unclean edges. While it wasn't perfect, the style worked because it was consistent. I could do that. So, instead of being paralyzed by trying to be perfect, I could proceed by focusing on being consistent.

Colt:

Me:

Consistent imperfection may sound negative, but to me it's motivating. Perfection is negative, paralyzing and fearful. It is made evident in my room full of unfinished projects, the days it has taken me to get this post just right and the months to gain enough confidence to share it. Let us raise our fists in the fight to be consistently imperfect.

Love.