Broken but still beautiful

Kintsugi. The Japanese art of repairing porcelain and ceramic objects with gold lacquer. 

The art of finding beauty in objects that are broken, of embracing their imperfections and celebrating their past. 

I stumbled onto kintsugi by accident. I fell down an internet rabbit hole searching for something totally unrelated; something I no longer remember, something that no longer matters. When I found the kintsugi philosophy, it intrigued me. It intrigued me because, in my world, objects that are chipped or broken have less value. They are cracked, imperfect. They are to be pushed to the back of a space and, while their history is not denied, it’s not celebrated either.

But this. This makes sense. This repairing. This fastidious blending of pieces. This celebrating the old, embracing the current, looking forward to the new. Holding value in what could be perceived to be flaws. Making the imperfect perfect by giving it a place — front and centre — in the hearts and minds of others. Making sure it’s cherished. 

It’s not the repairing of the objects that excites me most, though. It’s that I’m embracing the idea as a metaphor for my life. I was on a path. My world was broken when My Favourite Husband died. There were many choices to be made but it all boiled down to one: was I going to embrace my life with its shattered pieces and repair it? Was I going to blend my past and present to create a bold future; one that would allow my life to have meaning and purpose in a new way? Could I be whole again?

Yes.

I can. I am. 

I purchased a beautiful kintsugi necklace on Etsy recently as a reminder that life can be different but life can still be beautiful.

It is.