Meditations on the Quest for Perfection

I recently had a bracing comment made by a person whom I deeply respect that was one of those utterances that rang in my ears long after and became even more bracing as time elapsed.

 

The person said, “You have mentioned >>>>>  perfection  <<<<< a lot lately.”  The person then said, in words that I do not remember exactly but echo in my brain as “Perfection is an unattainable idea;  it is better to just do the best we can and put perfection aside.”

 

As we talked, the person seemed to misunderstand my own idea of perfection and to be inconsistent in usage of the term in [that person’s---  I’m not going to reveal identity or even gender as I relay this conversation] comments.  I pointed out that this person had often self-identified as perfectionist, in that way that can inhibit assertive action that might reveal performance short of perfection.  This person acknowledged that my observation was correct and tacitly admitted [this person’s] contradiction in characterizations.

 

I commented that ironically that while I assertively pursue Perfection, I label myself as a “near-perfectionist” willing to take risks in my endeavors that can result in others observing my lack of perfection.

 

I then, in essence, gave a fairly full exposition of my own view, which is as follows.

 

I was spiritually and intellectually mature at an early age, putting literal interpretations of the Bible at the periphery while taking the example of Christ-like behavior very seriously and putting my best approximation of that behavior to work in the world with a healthy disregard for the opinion of my fellows (I’ll trust to your memory of my experiential epiphany at age 10 that forever left me with little regard for the social evaluations of others).

 

A passage that rings in my ears and sings in my heart to this day is “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”

 

My partner in conversation did not remember my multiple mention of this passage from Matthew 5:48, which to me contributed to the conversational evidence that [this person] did not comprehend my own view very well.

 

For me, this moral charge from a Moral Paragon is to be taken seriously and resonates also with the spirit of the Enlightenment;  and in my view, that quest for human perfectibility is one of two great counterforces (the other being a conservative distrust of change) working dialectically for resolution in a way that will determine human destiny.

 

For me, Perfection is resonant with Plato’s Forms and the Ideal of Truth pursued while holding on to truth with a lower case “t” under the assumption that “t” and “T” may prove to be an identity---  but if not, then the moral obligation is to adjust one’s view, holding on to another “t” while continuing the pursuit for “T.”

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Perfection, for those who grasp the validity of the concept and have some chance of approaching the ideal, is a moral obligation.  Other terms could be used:  Plato’s Forms, satyagraha’s T, Moral Ideal, Paramount Goal, Ultimate Virtue.  I use such terms in identity with Perfection, finding the latter to be particularly clear.

 

Quest for Perfection assumes that this earthly sojourn has value and therefore is to be lived at the height of morality, ethics, empathy, and altruism. 

 

I regard my quest for Perfection as the paramount guide in my life, resulting in an abiding goal of maximally efficient time usage.  My quest for Perfection and the realization of great time efficiency has had several results that I regard as extraordinarily positive, among them, very briefly rendered:  wanting to be the best child of my parents that I can be;  wanting to be the best life partner that I can be;  wanting to be the best father that I can be;  wanting to be the best teacher that I can be;  wanting to be the best scholar and accumulator of knowledge that I can be;  wanting to take action in the world that makes possible the approach of Perfection of the world in centuries to come.

 

And the quest for Perfection in association with the above strivings has resulted in having become the best teacher whom I have ever met;  the formal publication of six books and pending formal publication of two and quite possibly many more;  the establishment of the life-transforming New Salem Educational Initiative;  the development of multiple platforms for advocacy, including in-person activism that puts a great idea for K-12 Revolution into the ether of human experience and rumination.  And I fervently hope and in my own view have approached Perfection in the various relationships noted above.

 

In the spirit of Perfection, every moment is lived with gratitude. 

 

One says “I love you” with full emotional force, very seldom if ever rendered quickly as “Luv ya.”

 

Every kiss matters for full focus. 

 

Every hug is to be felt fully. 

 

One lives and gives and appreciates with focused gratitude every moment in life:  every bite taken, meal cooked, smile rendered, conversation experienced, appeal made, lament shared.

 

I trust that such an ethic is the reason why I have had multiple people say to me, including strangers, “Geez, I never told anyone that before.”

 

Seeking Perfection makes all the more painful those many moments in my life when I have fallen short and said or done things that are insensitive, hurtful, unproductive---  or result in missed opportunity to do Good.  That’s why I also identify as “The World’s Most Guilty-Feeling Person.”

 

But the goal of Perfection is the Ideal to be pursued, if possible according to one’s personality and life circumstances (as I determined at an early age my own personality and good fortune certainly did allow).       

 

For those for whom the pursuit of Perfection is not possible, the next best alternative is to be a good, kind, sweet, empathetic, jovial presence in the world that leaves others better for that presence in their lives.

 

For too many, this one earthly sojourn ensues in a confused amalgam of ignorance, immorality, opportunity either unavoidably closed or not grasped.  This is the definition of Hell.

 

Those who live in quest for Perfection or, next best, as good people in the world, experience an approximation of Heaven.

 

Awareness of the alternative should, for those who experience an approximation of Heaven, result in walking with gratitude all the days of their lives.