Kintsugi
May 11 2025
Things break.
Human error,
wear and tear,
the force of gravity.
After all, nothing lasts forever.
The Japanese
who have a culture of formality
have made this an art.
The mending of a broken vase
expresses a revulsion of waste
and respect for its maker.
Just as one must venerate
the elders and parents and those who came before.
While its seams of precious metals
make no attempt at disguise.
The art of repair;
honouring resiliency,
finding beauty in imperfection,
and ultimately accepting
the impermanence of things.
But I’m unsure
how they’d mend a broken heart
or shattered soul.
All the wounded people
who struggle through life
either unseen and overlooked
or keeping up appearances.
There are some, though
who are proud of their brokenness
and refuse to be fixed,
have found their own gold
in difference
or disability.
You can see the scars,
red and raised
where my body mended itself.
And I agree
there is beauty in the strength they reveal.
But the invisible scars
are harder to heal.
And what about those
who aren't made of porcelain,
or are too broken
to piece together again?
Imperfection
that kintsugi cannot rescue
and cannot mend itself.
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