We are told that perfection does not exist yet we are constantly encouraged to aim for it. Do you actually look your age? We have a cream for that (because youthfulness is closer to perfection).
I have been wrestling with feelings of hypocrisy recently. I loudly proclaim that I do not want Instagram perfection yet I try hard to make the photos I post here as appealing as possible. I have posted images that, I’m sure, give hugely false impressions of my life. Pictures of beautiful Icelandic scenery and art from music festivals…how fab is my life?!
But those images were hard won and took many years for me to get.
I’m not after sympathy, my life is pretty good, but I battled hard for this ‘pretty good’ and I won’t forget (and in some cases won’t forgive) the knives in the back and ridiculously steep learning curves it took getting here.
It is human nature to want to present your most appealing side to the world and in my case showing off highlights from my recent past is reassuring. Yes, those things happened and I am allowed to enjoy the memories. So I shall continue to pick appealing photos to illustrate my posts, but I shall also remain aware of how they can be perceived.
(Some sort of metaphor about emerging from the clouds…)
The Errant Moon 
Share your experiences and joys in life loudly. I am greatly enjoying your site, images, and posts. And while I am going against nature, it is important to be proud of and wanting to share your best life.
Thank you, again 🙂
I know we don’t share exactly the same experiences but what works for me is finding a way to work with my nature, rather than fighting it (WAAAAY easier said than done, I know, sorry). I have a massive stubborn streak, if I decide I’m NOT doing something then it would take an army to make me…do you have something like that you could use? (I suspect yours is more creative than mine, could you channel stuff into a huge sculpure or write a play that pisses off all the right people?)
It is actually really helping me grow and improve as a person to keep putting my character defects on display. It was so taboo, growing up, to air any of our family’s dirty laundry for anyone else to be privy to so it is quite cathartic. If my mom knew what I put out for consumption she’d have a fit!
I used to obsessively use facebook to portray my perfect little family and how great my kids were from every angle and missed out on a lot of moments so I’ve done the putting my best (often exaggerated) foot forward online and this is much healthier!!
I am thinking about writing an e-book but I’m loving creating my website. Life is just getting better with actively pursuing my purpose.
Oh, how I hate some of the rules we all live under. Imagine how much better the world would be if people stopped pretending that we should all be perfect 🙂
It would be a much less hectic and stressed world.
I cannot imagine putting the unnecessary effort to apply mascara every day ever again… and then remove it!
I don’t live by societies rules. I be myself merrily.
Perfection is boring anyway.
Remove it? You’re supposed to remove it?! No wonder people look funny at me all day…