We worship the ideal, but we idolize the flawed. If you were not convinced, how many examples must I give to convince you? How many flawed religious leaders have been followed by countless masses in the name of the ideal religion? Why are tabloid shows, sites, and newspapers magnifying, or sometimes inventing, flaws of people so popular? Why aren’t products which are true opposite to tabloids successful? Would ideal beings have any sort of compelling story on their own given they have no flaw to deal with or overcome, and were only interesting due to the flawed people around them? What would the religious saviours’ stories be without the flawed humans around them to improve? Are ideal beings even human enough in their nature to fairly expect humans to relate to them, given our humanity trademark is our imperfection?

Our imperfection is our trademark as humans, and that imperfection is what makes people whose flaws are highlighted so interesting to us. We can totally relate to flaws, even when we can’t relate much to the actual flaws, like some that celebrities commit, despite most of us never having experienced anything close to their glamorous lives. No, despite our admiration and aspiration for the ideal, our engagement and obsession are for the flawed, because flaws are what make people most interesting.

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This post is one of 70 quotes I wrote, each with an accompanying essay, in my e-book and paperback Stars I Put in my Sky to Live By, on Amazon or Smashwords (choose your price including free!).