Perfection and Excellence

I came across a great quote recently, and as with so many things, it immediately brought Pokémon to my mind. Here is the quote:

"...we will chase perfection, and we will chase it relentlessly knowing all the while it can never be attained, but along the way we shall catch excellence."
-- Vince Lombardi, as quoted by Alton Brown

Actually, I've heard this quote before, but I didn't pay much attention to it, until I came across it again and discovered that it can somehow tie to Pokémon. This is what I wish to expound on now.

In many ways, this quote applies to Trainers of all sorts. The objective of a Trainer is to find the best Pokémon possible for battling, and in many cases this will be imperfect. But that's not a problem, since in many cases Trainers will search and search again until they find what they consider the best. Perfection is actually something that's attainable in regard to Pokémon, but it's a very rare thing indeed. In any case, excellence is the one thing that all Trainers strive for, on and off the battlefield.

This is such a wonderful and inspirational quote for any Trainer. It's wonderful because it encapsulates the universal spirit that all Trainers have or at least should have, which is to become the best they can be. It's inspirational because it drives them to maintain that spirit if they possess it and to attain that spirit if they don't already have it. Whether it's searching for perfect IVs in the main series or a high CP in Go, the end result is the same - it's all about making sure that only the best possible things are possessed so that Trainers may achieve the best results possible.

I, as a Pokémon fan, am impressed with this quote. I know I need to strive for the best I can get, and this is what I am trying to do as much as I can. I also realize that my skills or experience may be lacking in comparison to others, but I shouldn't be down because of that. What matters is that I've tried with all my best efforts and that it bears my best results; it doesn't have to be fully perfect, but if it bears excellence, then it is a very good thing. I'm sure any Trainer will agree with me on this matter - we all deserve only the best by our best efforts. And we can't ask for anything better than that. ☺