How many of us have made the mistake of thinking we were "in love" with someone when we really weren't? You know, sometimes we spot someone who we find attractive and create an image of that person in our heads. More often than not, we learn that the person in our minds is different than the person in real life. That's when our hearts are broken.
Truly loving someone means seeing that person for who they are, not for what they could or should be. It means accepting that that person is not perfect, but still caring for and encouraging them, not despite, but because of their quirks. This unconditional acceptance is one of the keys to a long term relationship with an individual.
I choose to seek this kind of relationship with the universe.
I've come to the conclusion that the world is not perfect. Sometimes, it downright sucks and I brood and fume that I hate it. Still, I refuse to make myself believe that somewhere, somehow my environment will come to resemble the idea of perfection that I have in my head. I'm not going to convince myself that there exists a flawless place where flawless beings dwell, because there's a good chance that such a place probably does not exist. If I spend my lifetime searching and pining for some sort of heavenly metaphysical realm that meets my standards of unblemished goodness, I will always come up empty handed. I will be little more than an old maid who wasted her life on the quest for the "perfect man" and in doing so pushed away all of the imperfect but nonetheless wonderful men she met.
In my universe I seek, not a Dulcinea made just for me, but a vast plane littered with thousands of stars and galaxies, all of which are imperfect but whose imperfections make them awe inspiring.
I'm done with fables and false hopes.
I want my love for the universe to be unconditional.
That is why I am an empiricist. That is why I am a nontheist.
I endorse this message. Perfection should be strived for but never expected.
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