In the beginning…
It’s all there in the greatest history book ever written.
Man is given everything he needs in life to be happy…Man wants more…Man takes what he shouldn’t…Man screws up…Man gets punished.
Not exaclty the most encouraging of stories to start off with is it!
In case you’re not sure what I’m talking about…I’m talking about the story of Adam and Eve.
You see, Adam was given the opportunity to have a wonderful carefree life. He was given the best fruit of the land, the nicest living quarters in the world, and a lack of concern and worry given that he had no shame.
The only condition…don’t eat from the Tree of Knowledge.
Well, as man is wont to do, Adam ate from the Tree and the rest is history. He was kicked out of the garden, forced to work for his sustenance the rest of his life, and experience physical pain.
Pretty upsetting isn’t it.
Most people will see this as a tale of caution, one in which men (and women) are always doomed to commit sin. A story that proves we will forever be tempted to do evil and must therefore spend our entire lives turning from evil.
That’s not how I see it.
No. The story of Adam & Eve is the story of G-d’s greatest gift to mankind.
The gift of self-improvement.
You see, G-d wanted a place to dwell among His creations. But if His creations were perfect, what joy would there be in spending time with them.
No. Man needed to be imperfect so that we could have what to improve on, what to learn from and for. By having something more to become we have a drive, a motivation, and passion for doing more and becoming more.
By becoming better in and of ourselves, we help to create a better world for others as well.
If we were all perfect with no room for improvement, we’d end up being bored.
So we need to have our areas for improvement. And so do those around us.
As men, fathers, and husbands, we can never be truly perfect. If we were, it would mean we would be complacent. There will always be some way that we can grow or improve in one area or another. If it is not in how we are, then it is in how we interact or react to others.
So instead of bemoaning all that has potentially gone wrong, instead focus on how much more we can grow.
Step into the suck. Step into the pain. Embrace the journey.
Grow!