Being imperfectly unique

We are so bombarded daily with messages of imperfection and how we must do this to achieve this level of beauty or recognition to have this many followers etc. To achieve being perfect.

Are we broken?

Are we that flawed?

Apparently we are! All of us.

It's no wonder mental health runs at its highest in society now.

Mental health to me seems to be a symptom of the stories that we are drip fed daily often subconsciously through the media and advertising.

The weight loss fitness and beauty industry is shameless in the way they throw so much at all of us that we shouldn't look this way it's not acceptable. The world of anime and games doesn't help the impressionable teens neither does the film industry though they are at least changing things now.

What we see is a stereotype that usually can't be achieved without plastic surgery and so the stories continue. These industries and others are breeding anxiety and depression for not being good enough, not being beautiful enough.

My eyes are wrong, my hips are to wide, my nose is to round, my hair is stupid and so many more things we feel and say to ourselves.

Why am I not perfect?

But what is perfection really?

It's one person's view of another like art it's subjective to interpretation and the emotional viewpoint of another.

What do I mean by that? everyone has a different view from their own experiences if those experiences are attached to negative emotions then the viewpoint will be in part from the negative viewpoint. It will in essence be a truthful untruth from someone's perspective but not the truth.

Quoted from "the meaning of perfection on dictionary.com" is this

"the state or quality of being or becoming perfect.

the highest degree of proficiency, skill, or excellence, as in some art.

a perfect embodiment or example of something.

a quality, trait, or feature of the highest degree of excellence.

the highest or most nearly perfect degree of a quality or trait.

the act or fact of perfecting."

When we look at the obscurity of the dictionary's meaning it is based on terms and statements used throughout our modern lives but what if the origin of perfection meant something different?

Quoted "From the etymology of words (origin) this is written, "

"Early 13c., perfeccioun, "consummate state or form, that degree of excellence which leaves nothing to be desired," from Old French perfection "perfection, completeness" (12c.), from Latin perfectionem (nominative perfectio) "a finishing, completing, perfection," noun of action from past-participle stem of perficere "to accomplish, finish, complete" (see perfect (adj.)).

From late 14c. as "flawlessness, correctness, purity," also "act of making perfect," also "state of being complete." The meaning "quality, endowment, or acquirement characterized by excellence or great worth or value" is from 1570s.

Early 15c. classical correction of Middle English parfit "flawless, ideal" (c. 1300), also "complete, full, finished, lacking in no way" (late 14c.), from Old French parfit "finished, completed, ready" (11c.), from Latin perfectus "completed, excellent, accomplished, exquisite," past participle of perficere "accomplish, finish, complete," from per "completely" (see per) + combining form of facere "to make, to do" "

You can see how things began to change and from there the feeling of flawlessness and ideals around beauty began to change and be twisted.

If we look at the current trends of Western society, we see how this flawless perfection has been taken as a marketing strategy and blown up since society became civilised. for instance, many years ago some places you could not go to the beach if you were not the proportions of the goddess Aphrodite/Venus because you might offend someone, this of course only applies to women.

Sending out even more signals that unless you are the perfect body you're not acceptable to show yourself in public.

My question is: How do they know the measurements of Aphrodite/Venus and who decided she was the perfect shape?

Who determines what perfection is?

Who ?

These are all marketed stories and manufactured lies originating from someone that didn't like a particular way someone else looked and the gossip began.

The way we are all bombarded with stories now through so many more platforms not just advertising on tv or magazines but social media and the internet these area's are even stronger than the advertising on tv because so many think when they read it on the internet it is the truth, it is real.

It's not!

It's a well crafted snapshot of trickery.

The mental health of the human race is taking a pounding there are more and more people suffering from depression, social anxiety, anxiety and the fears of being hunted down for being their unique selves.

Are wee going backwards or forwards.?

How is this allowed to happen?

Over my lifetime of 6 decades on t his planet I have experienced o many of these stories and shames of not being perfect noot looking like the perfect petite doll. Not being blonde or a red head beign to round to fleshy in the wrong places.

Years of trying to be something I wasnt tryng to change my mould led to anxiety and depression , feeling of unworthiness and contempt for not being born perfect. But as i entered my 5th decade i began to change and to see the patterns and stories and the age groups these are aimed at now men are also the target.

Where does it stop?

How many souls have to leave this earth before people begin to see how damaging this marketing of perfectionism is?

If we look back at some of the ancient artefacts we see how perceptions and perspectives change .

Once the Venus of Wilendorf was regarded as beautiful, a sensual goddess that had the body of lustful dreams.

we have generations of pain around perfection to heal and mve away from.

Can we do it?

I believe we can but only as fast as attitudes change and acceptance of everyone is unique and has their own unique shape and look. It has taken me 6 decades to finally begin to love my shape and my features.

Thats to long!

So many people cannot wait that long to heal their mental health.

Lets all be more awakened and aware of our own feelings around how we look at someone else.

Lets learn compassion as a strength and one of our core values.

Lets change the stories as quickly as we can.

These are my musings and my obsservations they are not based on scientific data or research they are one persons view and hopefully that is enough to start the wheels turning for others to look at their own view of this .

Til we meet again may you be healthier and happier eveyday new day.