A Blessed Mess

     “Many times I have made the statement that I could be the poster child for stupidity. I have made every mistake you can think of. I have wrecked my  business, gone bankrupt, nearly ruined my marriage, been a lousy parent, wasted time, done stupid things, said stupid things, overspent, under earned, and on and on and on. I constantly do things that contradict what I say I want. I am lazy. I offer myself and others excuses. It is a never-ending list. I add to that list daily. I’m a mess!”

     I’m not sure why I prefer the word ‘moron’ to ‘stupid,’ idiot,’ and other pejorative monikers, but wording aside, I nonetheless resonate with motivational speaker and author Larry Widget’s negative self-assessment – and my guess is that you might too. I find it hard to get through a day without adding to the list of moronic things I wish I had not said or done, but I must confess to having made such occurrences something of an art form!

     What concerns me about being a moron is not the reality of my condition, but my impulse with regard to it, namely my tendency  to heap on myself critical, judgmental, disparaging labels like, well, ’moron!’  Without dismissing or minimizing what could and should be changed regarding my behavior, what I think would be a better response to my ineptitude is something like, “There you go again, Tom,” or “You know, you’re more than the worst things you’ve said and done.”

    Although both may say a lot about our character, none of us are merely the accumulation of our words and actions; rather, we are, as scientist and mystic Teilhard de Chardin opines, spiritual beings having a human experience. Our human experience and our human nature may be flawed, but we are, even at our worst, essentially, substantially, invincibly spiritual.

    We may be a mess alright, but might it also be true that we are a blessed mess, loveable morons?

This being the case, a little positive self-talk may be in order when we are not at our best, not to mention that a more gentle compassionate response to moronic behavior  is more likely to bring about desired change.