By Woman Interrupted
My year 11 Art teacher commented on my report that “Woman’s attitude of ‘near enough is good enough’ is holding her back from being a top student”.
That statement stayed with me for decades.
From that point on I strived for perfection. I took up photography to replace my sloppy hand-painted art pieces. I went to the gym to improve my squishy rounded body. I even went to the hairdresser for the first time in my life. There would be no more ‘wonky’ perspectives and sloppy lines in my artwork. No more soft and squishy bits on my body. No hair out of place.
Perfection was my new aim; the perfect work of art, the perfect body, the perfect hair.
For decades and decades I continued the search. In the end I gave up art as I could not create the perfect piece. I went to the gym obsessively, some days I attended 3 aerobics classes in a row, one for tummy and thighs, one for vigorous burn and one for stretching, but alas the perfect body never came. I went to the hairdresser every 5 weeks, 3 hours of my life sitting in that chair and yet my hair would remain perfect for 1 one of those 5 weeks – 20 % is not perfection!
So here I am today seeking acceptance.
Acceptance to create art for joy and embrace all of its imperfectness. Acceptance of the body that encases me, squishy bits and all. Acceptance of my natural grey hair with all of its wispy bits.
Acceptance that “near enough IS good enough”.
