WHY?

Why a blog? Why Ugly Perfection? Why Faith Misguided?

These are all questions that I have asked myself a thousand times. Can I say to some extent, it just feels right? Yes, there’s definitely more to it than that, but that’s how it started. Just a feeling, an emotion, an energy inside of me that would not give me peace until I chose to listen to it. For me that energy has a name, God, for you it might be another name, and that’s OK too! This blog is my attempt to follow that leading that has built inside of me for the last five years…..probably more if I’m completely honest with myself. So here goes! I hope it comforts some, challenges some, angers some, and maybe even changes some. I write with raw emotion, complete honesty, and a compassion in my heart that could only come from my Creator. I want to see the world be a better, kinder place for my children and since I’m no politician, no person of power or influence, I choose my pen and words (the only powerful tools truly available to most of us)! I genuinely pray to use these tools well.

Ugly Perfection signifies for me the truth of our efforts to become who we are meant to be in this life. We all know perfection is unattainable, but let’s be honest, we still strive for some semblance of it in our lives, and for our children. It never ends in perfection of course, but often we do find (hopefully) some peace….however, along the way, even the most optimistic among us, would have to admit to a fair amount of ugly! Rarely intentional, “ugly” happens, people die, get sick, divorce, lose jobs, become mired in greed, judgement, ambition, urgency…for what we often can’t say….!

Enter, Faith Misguided! This might be touchy, but please hear me out! When things become “ugly” (hard, confusing, painful, unjust), we look to God, or our higher power, for an explanation….we all, for the most part, cling to our faith more fully at these times. What if, however, in our attempt to assuage our own “ugly” we begin to point hardened fingers towards what we perceive as another persons ugly? Instead of internal reflection and study, because (be honest) that work is so much harder, we deflect instead of reflect. For example, if you see a homeless person and immediately assume they did something to place themselves in that position….that’s a much more comfortable stance than one in which you could easily be in their place…because of that “ugly” we talked about earlier. Things we don’t fully understand or relate to (homelessness, true poverty, mental illness, racism, LGBTQ and the like) become targets for such statements as, “they just need to work harder”, “they need to pray more”, “their faith is weak”, “they are sinners”, and when that happens, our misguided faith, like a pin pointed missile, hits the hearts of those most vulnerable and most in need of our love!

Since this is my first post I will add that I hope you will take a few minutes to look around. There are articles and essays that may challenge your thinking a bit…but please give them their due diligence, it matters. In addition, there are books for further study, as well as a section for encouragement and personal stories, and lastly a resource list and emergency hot lines for those in need. Please send this link to your friends and family, use it for your own personal study and encouragement, and please feel free to share with me your thoughts….even if we don’t agree on everything. I want this to be an open, free space for discussion, sharing, learning and growing. Thank you to all that have already supported me in this endeavor!