The Imperfect Perfect You

Did you ever look in the mirror and wonder why you are here? How about staring at your reflection and noticing all of your imperfections? Did you ever peruse through a magazine, read a book or glance at your friend or neighbor and wonder why they could look better, dress better, or have more talent than you? The truth is, we have all been there and whether we admit to it or not, it’s hard to accept the areas we lack in while others excel.

We often come down hard on ourselves for not being as awesome as the next guy. Our negative thoughts often shape our perception of ourselves and can even prevent us from climbing higher and reaching our full potential. But as the Torah is the blueprint for our lives and always has the answers, I would like to illustrate a wonderful example as to why we should rid ourselves of negative talk, comparisons and false pretenses, and use our energy instead to focus on the imperfect perfect you.

Just yesterday my husband came home with a beautiful dvar Torah from the Rav of our Shul which he shared with us at the Shabbos table. At the beginning of Parshat V’Etchanan, Moshe is told by G-d that despite his lifelong dream to enter the land of Israel, it simply will not happen. The Lashon of the pasuk state the words

רב לך

“ it is too much for you”.

This same Lashon was used in Parshat Korach when Moshe tells Korach that the position of Kohen Gadol is not for him, as he is meant to be a Levi. What does this phrase mean and what lesson can we learn from it?

Moshe was a man destined for greatness.

Although raised in the palace of his enemy, and ultimately being forced to run from the only home he knew, G-d revealed Himself to Moshe through the burning bush and laid out His plans for him to become the leader of the Bnei Yisroel and take them out of exile. Moshe had the most beautiful combination of traits and was highly successful in his mission. Yet at the peak of it all, his mission ended when G-d told him so. Entering Israel may have been Moshe’s desire, but it was not his destiny.

Hashem placed each one of us on earth to perform our mission in life. Often it takes time for us to learn what our mission is, to believe in ourselves, our abilities, find our strengths and come to terms with our weaknesses. We can always use our areas of weakness to propel us to further better ourselves, but it is our strengths that we must focus on, cultivate and let shine. For that is why we are here. If we learn to discover our strengths and what makes us unique, and become content with what we are given, we can ultimately uncover the perfect form of ourselves. We must remember that we are not meant to do everything or be everything. We are just meant to be ourselves.

Changing our mindsets, believing in ourselves and refraining from comparisons amongst each other will not only help us succeed, but will also prevent jealousy of one another, closing the gap between us, allowing us to care for one another in a more loving way. Not only will it give us the chance to turn sinat chinam into ahavat chinum, but it will allow us to lead more fulfilling lives, for ourselves, and for each other.

Let us use the coming days to uncover our strengths, our wisdom and our abilities and make them shine. Let us share the traits that we have with others and use them to build each other up. Let’s work on closing the gap between us, and celebrate our imperfections. For in Hashem’s eyes, we are all made just the way we were meant to be, and that is just perfect.