The Broken and The Beautiful

"When the Japanese mend broken objects they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold, because they believe that when something's suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful." 

~ Barbara Bloom

I was inspired by this quote the first time I saw it, years ago.  What a lovely idea, that experience adds such a richness to something, it is worth celebrating with honor!  How wonderful could it be, if more of us could give such respect to that which is no longer in its primary, pristine state?

But along another SoCk, what of those people who suffer damage?  What of those of us who are so stretched, or pressured, or strained by Life's forces that they, too, become broken?  Is it possible for us to deal so reverently with a being that no longer retains the original essence of it's nature?

Just take a moment to think about it.  

What if you knew someone, loved them, treasured them and the relationship, and then somehow Life came along and they were suddenly - different?  What if they could no longer, never again, be as they were?  Could you deal with your shock and grief well enough that a connection could be retained, even if it was only through your adaptation?  Could you forgive that former loved one for changing?  Could you forgive Life for stealing what you had had, enough that you could find a way to love anew?

Could you accept meeting this new person as just that?  A new person, to be friended and learned and come to be understood, like any other?  What a painfully complex possibility, is it not?  To see a stranger living behind the face of your loved one?  Would you be strong enough to love this new person, even if they were rather forcefully substituted in the place of someone you had chosen to love?

It happens.  

Every day, in fact.

Maybe not to you.  Perhaps not to anyone you know.  But it does happen, and often.  Perhaps being aware of possibilities opens us up to more honest wisdom, in time?  I like to hope so.  Not that I spend my time thinking of all the worst-case scenarios of life, but I do think awareness allows us to see things in a new perspective, with new focus.  And since we never, really know what is going on behind the masks of others, masks that we all wear, it can open us up to empathy, if we are prepared with possibilities.

I must also say, how deeply I admire those who can do this very thing; love unconditionally, to the point that under any circumstances, their loved ones are entirely safe to be whatever - and whoever - they need to be.  It's not an easy thing, to say the least.  I believe, in fact, it is one of the hardest things one can experience in love.   But there are those who do it, and loyally find ways to deal with circumstances as they change.  I thank them, in behalf of those in this world who need that kind of love.  Because they don"t always match up, but when they do, it is a beautiful, priceless gift to this world, and they rarely get the gratitude they deserve.

Just figured I'd throw this out there, since it's been on my mind, and it's been a while since I posted.  Thanks for humoring me.

~ Me