“If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance.” Or at least that is what George Bernard Shaw said, but I don’t know what he is talking about. I mean, what skeleton? My closet, it’s spotless. No, no that is not a foot sticking out from under the door! No, that’s just a, um, sock. Simply a…spare thought. Things are just a bit disorganized at the moment, that’s all. Life’s good, everything’s perfect. Yup, that includes me.

Perhaps this is how it has always been, yet it seems that in the modern age perfection has become key. People tell us adolescents that flaws are what make each of us unique and, depending on the flaw, I suppose, should not be frowned upon. That loud, almost obnoxious donkey laugh of so-and-so sets her apart from the girl across the room with a tittery laugh. People should just shrug it off, who cares! However, that is not how it works. So-and-so tries to hide her laugh by holding it in, giggling silently as if her classmates will shun her for this imperfection. And that just may happen, so hide it away and pretend it is not there. Everyone will be happier.

Wrong, that is completely wrong. I have found that I would not love certain people if they were painted up dolls: forever smiling, always doing the right thing, and, above all, having beauty that would put Barbie to shame. Not that there is anything wrong with that; it simply makes me wonder what the person is hiding behind the mask of perfection. I discovered that it is the characteristics that could be considered flaws, which make these people so wonderful. They are not perfect, everyone knows it, and if everyone cares, then that is their loss. What people may not be able to understand is “Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull.” Sounds like W. Somerset Maugham, a playwright, hit this one right on the nail.

In addition to characteristic “flaws,” there are those that lurk in the past. These dark, unwanted memories are the real skeletons that haunt us, and we tuck them away. Not to say we should all throw open the doors and release these beasts; this definitely would overwhelm the world. I am merely saying that people should not cower from these memories and push them away as if they are not there, when it is these very memories that have shaped us into who we are.

We are our past and present, flaws and perfections, and, at the bottom of an extremely lengthy list, our appearance. Therefore we should embrace people for everything that they are. Yes, that includes the skeletons in the closets too. So grab that skeleton from the closet and let’s Tango!
Tangoing With That Skeleton

“If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance.” Or at least that is what George Bernard Shaw said, but I don’t know what he is talking about. I mean, what skeleton? My closet, it’s spotless. No, no that is not a foot sticking out from under the door! No, that’s just a, um, sock. Simply a…spare thought. Things are just a bit disorganized at the moment, that’s all. Life’s good, everything’s perfect. Yup, that includes me.

Perhaps this is how it has always been, yet it seems that in the modern age perfection has become key. People tell us adolescents that flaws are what make each of us unique and, depending on the flaw, I suppose, should not be frowned upon. That loud, almost obnoxious donkey laugh of so-and-so sets her apart from the girl across the room with a tittery laugh. People should just shrug it off, who cares! However, that is not how it works. So-and-so tries to hide her laugh by holding it in, giggling silently as if her classmates will shun her for this imperfection. And that just may happen, so hide it away and pretend it is not there. Everyone will be happier.

Wrong, that is completely wrong. I have found that I would not love certain people if they were painted up dolls: forever smiling, always doing the right thing, and, above all, having beauty that would put Barbie to shame. Not that there is anything wrong with that; it simply makes me wonder what the person is hiding behind the mask of perfection. I discovered that it is the characteristics that could be considered flaws, which make these people so wonderful. They are not perfect, everyone knows it, and if everyone cares, then that is their loss. What people may not be able to understand is “Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull.” Sounds like W. Somerset Maugham, a playwright, hit this one right on the nail.

In addition to characteristic “flaws,” there are those that lurk in the past. These dark, unwanted memories are the real skeletons that haunt us, and we tuck them away. Not to say we should all throw open the doors and release these beasts; this definitely would overwhelm the world. I am merely saying that people should not cower from these memories and push them away as if they are not there, when it is these very memories that have shaped us into who we are.

We are our past and present, flaws and perfections, and, at the bottom of an extremely lengthy list, our appearance. Therefore we should embrace people for everything that they are. Yes, that includes the skeletons in their closets too. So grab that skeleton from the closet and let's Tango!