When I was a teenager someone told me that I could never be a porn star. I had too many birth marks. Since then I’ve developed even more due to a number of hours spent on beaches. And I’ve fallen a few times, making dents and marks in my skin.
I looked at my phone tonight and noticed that I’ve got a few scratches on the back. Nothing major but the stunning backside of it has undeniably got a few marks. It wasn’t perfect when I bought it. As I first took it out of its box I noticed a small blue something appearing between the white band on the side and the metal casing. For a second I thought about going back, swapping it for another one but I decided not to. It was already my phone and instead that tiny blue mark became part of its signifier. A little detail, that doesn’t matter, but a detail that only anyone looking very carefully would notice. It makes my phone a bit more special.
As for the scratches I could put a case on my phone to prevent further ones from happening, but I love how it looks and feels in my hand. If I put a case around it that goes away. It would make it a slightly different phone and the experience of using it would change. I’m taking a bit extra care of the screen but other than that I’m using my phone without being too scared of making a few scratches. In hindsight, and to return to my birthmarks, dents and scars, I probably should have been more careful about being in the sun and sure, at time I wish my skin was flawless free from marks and dents, but if it was I wouldn’t be able to say “Oh yeah, that was from that time when I…”
I’m not sure perfection exits, or that it should. We learn through our experiences and they can at times be bumpy causing all sorts of dents and marks. It’s through those experiences that we learn to put things in perspective, are able to adapt and try new things. And they are often the ones that make for the best stories. Stories that others can relate and learn from, that can help people see things differently. Without those experiences of hitting bumps on the way, what would we actually be able to tell about our lives? If everything was always going to plan how would we relate to other people who run into bumps? What would we have in common and how would we ever progress?
Perfection in appearance, life, work or products shouldn’t be the goal. It shouldn’t be what we measure against. At least not the dent free kind. If we’re afraid of hitting bumps and getting dents or scars we’ll be living in a bubble. And that, as we know is never real.
As for my birthmarks and not being able to be a porn star, that was never something I wanted to be but just something my male class mate told me one day, out of the blue, when we were teenagers.
Tomorrow – Day 328 | Little good deeds
Image source: www.flickr.com/photos/blueridgekitties/4124099046
