The Deception of Perfection

When perfect isn’t enough

We, as people, are told that perfectionism does not exist. But, as a woman, I know this isn’t true.

I can’t speak for other genders, but since the beginning of time, women have absorbed a message that “perfect” does exist.

According to Plato’s Theory of Forms, perfection cannot exist in the physical world but only in the realm of thought.

With that in mind, consider the story of creation from the Bible.

I was taught from a young age that Adam and Eve were perfect. Plato would say they were the “ideal”. It was drilled into my mind that these two humans lived in a perfect environment where they lacked for nothing.

Their health was perfect; they only ate a vegan diet and all their food was organic.

They had no worries like the ones you and I bear. They had no need for money, everything was provided for them. As such, they also had the perfect relationship.

To top it off, every evening, they took an after-dinner stroll with the Maker of the Universe. I mean, what could go wrong?

Apparently, they weren’t the only ones in the garden, and we all know it only takes one troublemaker to send the world to hell in a handbasket.

Now, Eve is so beautiful she doesn’t even wear clothes. There was nothing to hide.

I can only imagine that she was also intelligent, kind, and confident.

There is no suggestion in this early account of Eve being “less” than Adam. She was not his servant; she was his equal.

She had no Instagram, Tiktok, or other social media to tell her how she should look, what she should wear, or what behaviors were expected of her.

There are no other women around to suggest she lose a pound or two, change her hair color, or whiten her teeth. There was no one to whom she could compare herself.

She is in a perfect mental place when this troublemaker suggests to Eve, the perfect woman, that she should try a certain fruit that was off-limits.

She casually drops a name when she answers, “Well, I visit with the Maker of the Universe every evening, and she says it’s the one thing in the garden we should stay away from.”

Troublemakers always have an answer, and this one is no different. He says, “You know, the only reason she doesn’t want you to eat this fruit is that she knows it will make you like her.”

Eve, clearly startled, asks, “What do you mean?”

“Well,” the troublemaker is getting a little excited now as he stirs the pot, “She knows everything, and you don’t. If you eat it, you’ll be as good as her, and she doesn’t want that.”

So, the perfect woman now sees herself as imperfect, not good enough, not smart enough, and not pretty enough. She eats the fruit so that she will be.

As the story goes, this act causes the downfall of all mankind.

Women have absorbed this story into their DNA.

For centuries, women have been told what they should look like, what they should weigh, and what they should wear. I’d love to blame it all on the Adams in the world, but ladies, we must be truthful.

I have heard women say that they dress to please other women more than themselves or their significant others. I mean, my girlfriends are more likely to compliment my new lipstick or shoes than any of my male friends. So, why do we do this?

According to research by The Conversation, an online academic journal, it is true that women dress to be fashionable and compete with other women for men — but there’s more. The interesting part is that “it’s not just about dressing better. In fact, my colleagues and I found that women can be motivated by another factor: avoiding the slings and arrows of other women.”

We don’t want to be made fun of, looked down on, or perceived as “not good enough”.

The only difference now is that women are helping to perpetuate the lie that the troublemaker told Eve way back in the day.

Stop the madness.

Isn’t it interesting that the ancient story from the Bible suggests that a person believing they are “not good enough” caused the fall of mankind? I can’t speak for men, but in my opinion, it is causing women to fall every day.

Remember Plato’s Theory of Forms? Perfection cannot exist in the physical world, but only in the realm of thought.

When you look in the mirror, do you see perfection or what the troublemakers of our modern world want us to see — imperfection? When we see ourselves as imperfect — not good enough — we give other people our power.

In my experience, not feeling good enough about myself made me buy things that I didn’t need, wear things I didn’t like, and even allow abusive behaviors.

Perfection isn’t looking the way someone tells us we should. It is looking the way we do. We are just as we should be — different sizes, colors, and shapes.

Don’t allow the troublemakers of our modern world to sell you the lie that you are not enough if you don’t do things their way.

Perfection exists when we accept ourselves as we are. Authentically and wholly ourselves.

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” ~ Oscar Wilde