Perfection is overrated.
Whether you believe in angels or not (I do, btw), I’m not sure that what we seek is really what they are. Common perception of angels is: white robe + halo + tinsel wings + long shiny blond hair (for real, how did THAT happen?) + perfect manners and behaviour. Something this yoga pants + spiky hair + ass-that-will-not-stop-its-race-to-the-floor + really-trying-to-stop-cussing gal can NEVER live up to. (*I always imagine God shaking His head at me for my phraseology.)
Take the sand dollar. I don’t know of a beachcomber who doesn’t do the crazy happy dance when they find a whole one-it’s one of the holy grails of seashell people. They are just beautiful! So what do we all seek? The whole one. The perfect one.
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We find lots of broken sand dollars. Tons of pieces that have been crushed and battered by the ocean, but which still find their way to shore. We don’t even stop to pick these up-after you’ve spotted a couple, you just move along in that quest for the perfect one.
But did you realize that inside the perfect sand dollar are angels? If it were to stay intact, the angels are never seen-never released-never experienced in their natural beauty. Sure, they’re fragile-just like you. Consider that if the sand dollar is never broken, you would never see the angels within.
We have days and hours and minutes and years that seem designed to break us. Those days when YOUR problems are worse than anyone else’s problems EVER. Remember that those days pass. If 2014 sucked for you, look ahead to 2015.
.
If you were to finish the journey with your hair perfectly coiffed, nails done with no chips, spotless clothes...never having needed or granted the forgiveness of someone else, never having eaten crow, never having made a mistake that required groveling to somehow patch it together-then was it even worth it? You’d be pretty on the surface but the rest of us would not have seen the grace and beauty of the angel within you.
. And that in your brokenness, you’ll release those fragile, delicate angels that bring depth and meaning to your life. I promise to forgive you if it’s needed, and I’ll go ahead and ask the same of you (*because I can promise that I’ll tick somebody off this year by being more edgy and straightforward than they want).