I have a motivational sign on my desk in my office.
It sits next to my fake plant (you know why it's a fake one if you know me).
There are a few different cards in it, each with something powerful to say.
During the holiday season, I usually have it set to this one.
You don't have to be perfect to be amazing.
So true. In so many ways.
To be amazing, at least by my definition, you have to be complex and unique.
It's not possible to be that if we are perfect. Clean, straight, simple lines, no wrinkles, no nuance.
What fun would that be?
But yet so many of us think we have to be.
Especially during the holidays.
The Thanksgiving meal has to be just right, food set out on beautiful platters, family around the table, all happy and smiling.
And when it doesn't turn out like that, many times we worry and have regret and lose sight of the beauty of the imperfectness of life.
I wasn't always good at embracing this.
But as I've grown older, I like to think I'm wiser (at least a little bit).
This Thanksgiving, I hosted my boys' dad and his wife, her mother, and their grandmother. We ordered our meal from the local grocery store.
Prep consisted of putting together a few appetizers, and ensuring that everything was warm at the same time.
Jacob had just had all four of his wisdom teeth pulled out on Wednesday, so he ate mac and cheese and yogurt and paused to ice his swollen cheeks a few times.
Ryder was home from college but had to go to work for a few hours so after our meal he left us for awhile.
I had to put the cat in the basement so she wouldn't try to climb all over the counters and get into the food.
We played Spoons and got a little wild a few times, sending the spoons flying onto the floor.
We ate too much dessert and there are too many leftovers in my fridge. Once Jacob can eat solid food again, I see a leftover night in our future! (Read this blog post for the backstory on that).
It was a fun, lowkey, far from "perfect" holiday.
But we smiled and we laughed and we shared time with our boys that was pretty amazing.
I think we need to stop trying so hard to be perfect.
Look around us at the ordinary moments in our lives that make us smile. Pause and reflect and be proud of all we've accomplished.
None of us will ever be perfect. We're not meant to be.
This life is a complicated journey, full of twists and turns, really hard moments and really great ones. All mixed up together.
Let's celebrate our holidays remembering that.
Laugh when things go wrong and enjoy the stories we now have to tell.
Spend time with people who help us be our best selves.
And lean into this imperfect, messy, amazing life.
It's so much more fun that way!
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