*I recorded the first portion of this post while walking through a Dollywood parking lot.
Every trip, every time I go out of town, I learn a little bit more– about myself and just about life. As I am walking through the Dollywood parking lot, I learned that we are all human beings.
Now, are some more flawed than others? That’s a really good question.
But we’re all flawed.
No one human being is better than the other because they have less or more flaws, but I think an important part of being a human is owning up to your flaws because if you can’t own up to it and get butt hurt every time a flaw shows, that’s not okay. It’s time, as humans, that we own up to our flaws, and we recognize the fact that we are no better than the person next to us, no matter your upbringing, whether you’re an only child or a family full of twenty thousand kids.
No matter the situation or circumstance, we are all human, and we must accept our flaws and the flaws of the person next to us. If the person has a problem recognizing their flaws, that’s a different story.
No one is better than the next person.
After listening to what I said in the Dollywood parking lot, there are some things I want to add (and possibly repeat).
None of us are perfect, and having more materialistic things than others doesn’t make you better. It literally just means you have more stuff. I find it interesting that some people who have a bunch of materialistic items think they are flawless humans because they A) have the money to spend on stuff and/or B) rely on others to buy materialistic things for them.
No matter how much stuff you have, we are imperfect people. In relationships, especially those of deep connection and meaning, you really see the good and bad of the person you are with. Whether it be a friend, partner, etc., it all comes out. In these relationships, sometimes the “bad” or flaws clash with the other person’s and difficult conversations have to be had in order to move forward and grow.
If you can’t accept that there are parts of you that are imperfect, a difficult conversation has to happen. Recognizing/accepting flaws is different from constantly being self-deprecating. There is a big difference; after a while, having self-deprecation brought into every conversation gets a little tiring. Self-deprecation often leads to wanting pity or empathy; recognizing your flaw simply shows you know a part of yourself that isn’t the best and may need some work.
I don’t know if any of this makes sense, but these are the kind of random thoughts I have on trips when I really reflect on what’s happened during the trip and realize something new.
Again, thank you to Amy and Rebecca for the wonderful fall break trip. Thank you to the Dollywood parking lot for stemming these thoughts.
I can’t wait for the next adventure.
Featured image credit: Jacek Dylag