Imperfect Perfection

As a Connecticut resident for the past 25 years, I was delighted to see the UConn women basketball team win a second consecutive national championship-- and secure a second undefeated season! Last night, they defeated Stanford 53-47, their 78th consecutive victory.

So UConn completed a "perfect" season. Yet, the championship game was anything but perfect. In fact, the first half was dismal for both teams. They shot a combined 7 for 40 in the first twelve minutes and the score at halftime was Stanford 20, UConn 12. The twelve points tied the lowest total for a half of any UConn team ever, and set a record low for a women's championship game.

In other words, this game was not only imperfect-- it was severely flawed. Yet, in the second half, UConn's best player, Maya Moore, lifted her game to its usual high level and led her team to victory, scoring 23 points.

The lesson I took from this game is that perfection is nearly always imperfect. This is true of every area of life including the spiritual realm. Perfection is a moving target. Once we achieve one level of perfection, there is always another level to strive for.

While we usually use the word "perfect" to describe something that cannot be improved upon, human perfection can always be improved. We are always growing, evolving and developing. We are prone to mistakes, flaws and errors. When we can accept that perfection is always imperfect, then we can be free of perfectionism and be content with an imperfect life.