Kintsugi

The Japanese were onto it! The ancient art of Kintsugi is perhaps the most perfect example, metaphorically speaking, of how our brokenness can be transformed. Craftsmen were tasked with the role of rebuilding broken pottery by binding the broken pieces together with gold. Therein though, it is the brokenness that is the foundation of the new more valuable art. We are no different. The pain of life is real and when we hit rock bottom it can feel as if our souls have been smashed into billions of pieces. I have, like so many of us felt the sting of abandonment, humiliation, failure and rejection. I shattered so ungracefully at times I thought I'd never recover all the pieces. I was clumsy too. Thinking I could sweep up just the big bits with a pan and brush, ignoring the shards that continued to cut my feet as I tried to walk forward. My feet were so cut, I no longer knew a step without pain. Suffering was my calling card. I hated it. I scolded myself for the despicable human being that I was told that I was. Bleeding all over the place. Waking up to the truth of the magnificence of my being took my shattered ego some convincing. But with persistent effort the seed grew. I deliberately sought out understanding of the source of suffering and the power that I alone could weild, if I had the fight left in me to do the work. It's painstaking work! Imagine being the craftsman that carefully took my time to recover and ensure every last broken shard was present, ready to craft a reimagined and more beautiful version of me. Stronger and more valuable than before. Imagine that the shattering was the most important part of the journey and without it, the new vessel could not have existed. The shattering is intense and horribly painful. Relentlessly, I have shattered and rebuilt. Enough times to know that I now feel almost completely made of gold. To shatter and rebuild is to know thyself from rock bottom to invaluable. Kintsugi translated, I believe means 'golden joinery'. Repairing with gold! The shattering is enivatable because we're human. Our level of suffering is optional. Do the work! In Faith, Hope and Love. ❤🧡💛💚💙 Susie