We were given bowls that represent us and we took time to be mindful and be grateful for showing up. We placed the bowl in a cloth bag which represented our community and the people who surround us and keep us safe. We then hit the bowl with a hammer (aka life at times).
Finding strength in imperfection. My sister introduced me to the traditional Japanese art form of Kintsugi, meaning to join with gold. She and I participated in a workshop that made me think of this year/life and how we end a year that had broken pieces and begin anew by reassembling the shattered pieces. The process of repairing a vessel examines our relationship with fracture and imperfections…I think we can be ashamed by scars and flaws but what if we approach them with compassion and humility for what was gained and learned.
But what if we shift our perspective on what it means to be whole? Instead of disguising, discarding, or replacing the cracks in life, we actually highlight them with gold and draw attention to our imperfections. We need not be ashamed. We can display our humanness with beauty, grace, strength and gratitude. My friend Sarah says to “look for the gold” and I think that sums it up nicely.
We then reassembled the bowl and began to highlight the cracks with gold to draw attention to the brokenness and repair.
