Broken and the “Golden Repair”
I have a confession to make–I’m broken. But I’m okay, because I’m broken due to some hard work, some good successes and some horrible failures. It’s also okay because I’ve learned along the way. No one can undermine all the work I’ve done to put myself back together–hopefully a little better than I was before. While being broken is natural, staying broken…is not. Most of us strive to succeed, but failure is inevitable and wisdom is earned only after failure is endured. This is what I appreciate so much about the the Japanese art of Kintsugi.
Kintsugi is the art of filling in the cracks of a broken object with gold, silver, or platinum. In America we often recycle or simply throw things out, but we rarely “fix” what we have broken (perhaps, in another blog, I’ll tackle that thought process on its own). What I love about the art and thought that goes into Kintsugi is that there is a renewed sense of beauty in the restored object. The “scars” and “brokenness” of the object are not only evident in the precious metals used to fuse it back together, but also in the time, patience, and wisdom set aside for the repair.
Without cracking an egg, you cannot eat a meal. Without making mistakes, failing and breaking, you cannot reveal the wisdom necessary to spur you on to greater heights. Embrace your brokenness, share your wisdom and spread the art of “golden repair” with those around you, because your wound is where the light comes in.
Prepare. Prevent. Protect. 