That does it. I’ve finally had it up to here with the perfect is the enemy of the good as an excuse for crappy writing.
If it is true that the perfect is the enemy of the good, then I declare my allegiance to the perfect, and take the good for my enemy as well. Let me stand shoulder to shoulder with the perfect as it does battle with the good. Let me steal into the tent of the good late at night and slay it where it sleeps.
For while the good might be an easy friend to make, it is an unreliable ally, for it will always melt away at the first sign of challenge. The perfect is surely harder to befriend, but it will prove to be not only a steadfastly loyal partner but also an enlightened teacher, always encouraging friends and students to overcome obstacles, seek creative options, and respond, not simply react, to circumstances.
And if I shall fall while fighting alongside the perfect, let them never dare say that I fought for a lost cause. Let them instead know that I fought for the noblest cause of all — the drive to improve, the impulse to reach higher, the fundamental urge to aspire.
Those who would fain invoke one’s inevitable failure to achieve perfection as an excuse for never trying to attain it, I say unto you, o band of brothers, that such men shall never truly drink richly from the fountain of life.
And that’s just from reading blogs. Don’t get me started on discussion forums.
Program Note:
When reading this post, it helps to have Patrick Doyle’s score for “Henry V” playing in the background, particularly the track for Henry’s St. Crispin’s Day speech. Then turn it off just before the last paragraph (if you can do so with the screechy record-needle-sliding-off-the-turntable sound, all the better).
Just a helpful hint to improve the quality of your reading experience.
Comment by sottovoce — February 14, 2010 @ 12:26 pm