It Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect: The Day the Cows Got Out

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What do you do when life doesn’t go according to plan? How do you let go of perfectionism and control, trust God, and stay present when everything seems to be going wrong?

Sometimes God gives us the lesson before we know we’re going to need it.

Earlier in the week, I had been preparing for a family party at our farm and reminding myself of one simple truth:

It doesn’t have to be perfect.

I didn’t need a perfectly clean barn. Every decoration didn’t have to be just right. Everything on my list didn’t have to get finished.

The purpose of the party was to celebrate people we love, enjoy our family, and be present for the moments God was giving us.

I thought I understood the lesson.

Then two of our neighbor’s steers got out.

In the rain.

The day before the party.

Apparently, I needed a more advanced lesson.

Letting Go of Perfection When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned

The steers spent about thirty minutes running through the beautifully mowed—and very wet—part of our yard where everyone would be gathering the following evening.

As I stood in the rain trying to keep two runaway steers away from our waterfall, I found myself repeating the same conversation with the Lord:

“You’ve GOT to be kidding me.”

And then:

“It doesn’t have to be perfect.”

Over and over.

Eventually the steers were rounded up, but they left muddy hoofprints and a few other little “gifts” throughout the party area.

So there I was.

In the rain.

With a shovel.

Apparently, we had made progress.

It was funny. It was frustrating. And it became a surprisingly good picture of what letting go of control and trusting God can look like in everyday life.

Trust doesn’t always mean we’re completely unbothered by what’s happening.

Sometimes it means doing what’s ours to do while releasing what we cannot control.

Maybe the Goal Isn’t Perfection—Maybe It’s Presence

By Friday night, everything that truly needed to be finished for the party was done.

Saturday morning, we went to both of our granddaughters’ soccer games.

Later, I realized something:

I hadn’t thought about the party at all while I was there.

I wasn’t mentally cleaning the barn.

I wasn’t running through my to-do list.

I wasn’t thinking about what I should be doing at home.

I was simply there.

Present.

That’s when I realized God might be teaching me something deeper than how to tolerate imperfection.

I wasn’t learning to care less.

I was learning to hold the details loosely enough that I could actually receive my life while it was happening.

We can spend so much time trying to perfect a moment that we completely miss the moment.

Trusting God When Your Plans Change

Saturday evening arrived, and the weather was beautiful.

Our family gathered around the fire in the same place where two runaway steers had been tearing through the wet grass