In the spirit of authenticity…

I had a post written about being authentic/cutting the crap that is spiritual pleasantries and a whole host of other stuff I may get to at a later date. (Because, really, it’s a struggle…especially for Christians. Christian women are the worst. See Vine below for my thoughts on that matter.)

Women’s Bible study voice requirement. I love women’s ministry but this makes me die a little inside. https://t.co/0P681yoCBL
— Sarah Brooks (@sarahbrooks13) June 10, 2013

[Note: It’s not that Christian women aren’t authentic, because many, many are. It’s just when the voice comes out... I’m skeptical.]

But let’s skip the dramatic reading and go to a fun exercise in authenticity everyone should do:

Make a list of things you’re good at and a list of things you’re terrible at.

I met a girl who had a running note on her phone that she’d update with this information and it’s genius. And hilarious.

Half of our struggle with being authentic is our unwillingness to admit any form of weakness.

And, heaven forbid we post the outtakes of life on any form of social media.

A picture of a new mom shoving a foot-long hoagie into her face while everyone else in the room admires the newest familial addition just isn’t as widely accepted as a new mom staring lovingly into the eyes of her squishy new baby, regardless of which photo most accurately described the scene.

So in the spirit of transparency, here are my lists*:

Things I’m good at:

Efficiency
Making people laugh when they’re sad
Comebacks
Seeing lonely people
Following up
Speaking my mind
Memorizing locations and finding things in the dark
Making boring things fun (i.e. meetings)
Tweeting
Texting and typing at lightning speed
Copying other people’s crafty ideas
Having the best “the first time I met you” stories
“Dash” computer games (Diner Dash, Wedding Dash…any/all time management games)
Making salsa
Picking nail polish colors
Costuming
Being comfortable around people different than myself (race, religion, age, culture, etc.)
Crossing my eyes
Imitating voices
Befriending teenagers
MacGuyvering toys out of nothing in public
Eating

Things I’m bad at:

Exercising
Saving documents
Filtering
Volleyball (/all sports involving coordination)
Noticing haircuts
Observing the speed limit
Putting outfits together
Judging how much time it takes to get somewhere
Sketching things (dimensions especially)
Fake sleeping
Flipping pancakes
Parenting without Google
Finding the exact paint chip on a wall of choices
Throwing gum out the car window
Keeping nail polish on longer than 2 days
Judging the amount of spaghetti to cook
Adding things quickly
Remembering birth control pills
Understanding what my husband does for a living
Thinking through a tattoo choice
Cooking bacon without being scalded
Hot gluing
Dressing appropriately for weather
Knowing lyrics
Parking next to curbs
Eating the snacks I packed for Beckett

There it is. An updated version of “Sometimes I’m awesome, sometimes I’m not.”

I’d like to hear what you’re awesome at, as well as your unfortunate traits. Go forth and make your lists.

Maybe one day I’ll share my husband’s lists, too. His include some funny stuff such as “layering cheese in microwave nachos” and “facial recognition”. I’ll let you imagine which goes on which list. (I hope you don’t die of anticipation waiting for the answer.)