There is a Japanese concept called Wabi Sabi, which, among other things, expresses the imperfection of all things. In that imperfection, we can find perfection. Quite the paradox, isn't it?

And yet in our modern Western world (which encompasses more and more of the world), false perceptions of "imperfection-free" perfection give rise to everything from anxiety and eating disorders to compulsive consuming and elective plastic surgery. The delusion of such an approach is that if we control the unknown, the uncertain and the unattractive (according to that particular day), then we'll be happy, loved, and successful.

While such trends may be good for certain individuals' bank accounts, or for businesses that sell diet-pills and elective cosmetic surgery, are they truly healthy for individuals or the common good? Of course not, because they rely upon self-hatred, body mutilation, starvation, a culture of ridicule and cruelty, and the impossible quest to meet a standard of perfection that is unreal and forever shifting.

Wabi Sabi, and similar philosophies, emphasize a less superficial and anxiety provoking world-view and set of priorities in favor of those that have greater depth, simplicity, elegance, meaning, and rootedness. Such ideas call upon us to see the great beauty in all that is around us, and appreciate the imperfections that contribute to a joyfulness and beauty well beyond anything that can be engineered.

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