Beauty In My brokenness

Brokenness is a term we use to describe a state of being in which we see something, usually the condition of our lives, as being shattered or in pieces and beyond the realm of repair. We usually find ourselves in a state of brokenness in the aftermath of hurt, pain, loss, and grief. Due to the origin point of a state of brokenness usually being viewed as stemming from a negative place, we see brokenness through what we are taught and learn as an unwelcome, unwanted state of being.

The human condition is one of suffering. One cannot escape all the arrows that life will shoot at us as human beings. Illness, tragedy, and death are all accepted norms, and though we do everything we can to try to avoid and/or control this reality, we ultimately know we cannot. This shared condition means we are all in line at some point to be broken and by definition find our lives in a state of brokenness. All of us. This is not meant to be a message of doom and gloom though, but rather, hope.

If we all will experience a state of brokenness, how can there be any beauty in life at all? Yet, people still smile. Families still grow. Kindness is shown every single day toward neighbors, family, friends, and strangers all. If we suffer and accept that bad things will happen beyond our control and also rejoice and come together and love, that tells me we make a choice. We do it every day. We do it in spite of. We live. That is where the beauty abides, in our shared brokenness.

Just as a side note, read into the practice of kintsugi. It is the practice of inlaying metals into the broken pieces of an object with the intent of preserving it. It is really cool to see for one thing how the preservation is done, but it also has a philosophy that is relatable to that of the human condition.