“Those who insist on perfection or nothing will surrender the world to evil…”

-Rabbi Irving Greenberg

Rabbi Irving Greenberg, also known as Yitz Greenberg, is a Modern Orthodox rabbi, Jewish-American scholar and author. He is known as a promoter of greater understanding between Judaism and Christianity.

I only spent a few hours one weekend studying with Rabbi Greenberg, but the teaching above was a major takeaway. I once had a man come up to me and tell me that I didn’t care about the environment because I wore a watch with a battery instead of a windup one. Never mind that I run my house on solar power, compost everything, recycle the rest, drive an electric car and work with major corporations on sustainability issues, I was less than perfect, and therefore no good.

Well, I’m guilty of that charge of lack of perfection. While I’m always striving for a positive impact on the world, I leave a few scars now and then. I am far from the ideal. But the point is to always make the effort, however big or small, to move the needle in the right direction. One small course correction can send us to an entirely different destination. And giving up ensures that I won’t have much of an impact on the things I care most about.  I’m reminded of this lesson time and again in raising children. While the good may be the enemy of the perfect, insistence on perfection may destroy the good.

Let’s not let ourselves off the hook, but let’s not hang ourselves on the hook, either! We were born to be real, not perfect.

What imperfect good thing can you begin today, and build upon tomorrow and the days after that?

Joe Laur is a father, husband, artist, builder, naturalist, consultant, and EcoKosher mashgiach. He lives with his wife Sara in western Massachusetts, where he serves as head groundskeeper and resident singer songwriter. Send him your favorite teaching quote for commentary. He can be reached at joe.laur@joelaur.com.