Mediocrity

Though it may seem strange, mediocrity has become a goal. That this is so can be affirmed simply by looking around. You needn't look far. Look critically at the things gathered in your house. Look critically at your house. Look critically and you will see that the end destination of almost everything is mediocrity.

We have to reach far and wait long to find better and often it seems just out of reach. We look to our schools and find that the government has recognized the desired goal of mediocrity and has embraced it. No one should be left behind, they say, then set about holding those back who would otherwise excel.

We read new writers who, though they are acclaimed by mediocre critics, somehow have lost something. Something important. Something essential. They have lost the desire to be the best and find it easy to say, "Ah, that's good enough."

I am heartened, however, when I see those who have decided, in spite of the mass of mediocrity, to strive to be the best at something. Anything. To do the best they can. To display only their best. There aren't many, but there are enough to encourage the thought that, yes, there is a future. That someone will always be moved to do better than the last time against the tide of that's-good-enough mediocrity that threatens to drown us all.