The other day, I took one of my favorite walks through the rice paddy fields near Ubud, and it was what I’ve come to know as imperfectly perfect.
So, what do I mean by that?
Well, my experience of life is that it’s imperfectly perfect. My eventful walk through the stunning fields really brought this home to me.
Suddenly, a loud motorbike blared down the path disrupting the silence. Whilst over on my right, a farmer started up his ploughing machine. Glancing back to the path in front of me, I narrowly dodged an old man on his bicycle.
From practically hearing the rice plants growing, to actions-stations in 10 seconds flat.
Oh. Did I mention I was also live-videoing for my vlog at the time? It was imperfectly perfect.
I used to strive for it all being exactly right, and that eventually I’ll ‘arrive’at this point x, and THEN it’ll all be ok. Now I’m realizing, I put a lot of pressure on myself in the process and stayed in denial. I’d say, ‘oh, everything’s going great’, although it didn’t feel like it was. I never felt like I’d arrived.
When we step outside of that concept, outside of perfect: when we see life as imperfectly perfect, we open ourselves to so much more. Accepting where we are – right now – is a powerful place to begin. The imperfectly perfect present is right here as soon as we choose to see it¹.
Unless we do, we may end up replacing these priceless moments with stress and worry. Expecting perfection leads to constant disappointment and failure. Releasing it shows the beauty that’s right here – right now.
¹Jess Stuart, in “Being Happy Doesn’t Mean that Everything is Perfect,” observes that “every silver lining has a cloud, and the reverse is also true, because true perfection is always imperfect.” By this she is saying that the authentic experience is perfect, even if it wasn’t what we expected. In this way, it is imperfect yet wonderful.
Fi Jamieson-Folland D.O, is a Lifestyle Consultant, with over 26 years experience in Europe, Asia and New Zealand as a qualified osteopath, educator, writer, certified raw vegan gluten-free chef, speaker, health mentor and Health Brand Ambassador. She loves to globe-trot with her husband Chris (NZ, Australia, USA, UK + Europe and Indonesia are current favourites) relishing an outdoor lifestyle and time with family and friends.
