My Easter Disorder

It has been a decidedly imperfect week for me.  The kids are on spring break, so I'd planned all sorts of fun activities.  We were going to do some home improvement projects, visit museums, and help some neighbors.  Instead, we've had three different viruses circulating among the kids.  Needless to say, I have not been the fun-loving mom I'd hoped I'd be.

You'll probably think this has nothing to do with the topic, but hang in there.  Lately, for research, I've been reading books about eating disorders.  I'm a perfectionist, a control-freak, and I'm sometimes mean to my body, so I can really relate to people who suffer from eating disorders.  Another reason I can relate is that I'm an American woman.  I'm guessing most American women walk around with negative voices in their heads.  You know those voices--they say things like "you should lose weight," "you're not as smart as she is," and "if you just tried harder, things would be perfect."  Why do we do this to ourselves?

The Easter catalogs almost convinced me that I was a failure this year.  I had this idea in my head that Easter is all about healthy people in new clothes picking flowers.   No.  It's not about that at all.  Easter isn't about being perfect.  It's about getting a fresh start.  It's about not having to be perfect.  It's about having hope even when things look hopeless.  How can anyone not see the message in the seasons?  Winter's bleakness always yields to beautiful spring flowers.  Always!  So I'm quieting the negative voices about my imperfect spring vacation.  And I'm reminding myself that life wasn't meant to be perfect.