SHATTERED OR BROKEN
I was in a hurry as I placed the champagne flute in the cabinet. It promptly fell to the counter shattered and scattered shards of glass on the counter and the surrounding floor and rug. “Humpty-Dumpty” the champagne glass, had a great fall and couldn’t be put back together. The incident was forgotten until the wee morning hours of the next day. Wee morning hours often find me awake and wondering about this or that. I remembered that shattered glass had been a minor theme in my world since the beginning of 2024.The photo today is proof.
Although visually beautiful, shattered things are never able to be completely repaired. The thing may be valued and valuable but an attempt to repair is often too costly with little possibility of a good outcome in appearance or functionality. Sometimes the shattered thing should have been replaced or discarded before it was damaged but was retained for various reasons. Replacement is most likely the best option.
Contrast that with broken objects. Broken things may be internally damaged but can be repaired or a part replaced. If the outside is cracked it can be glued etc. The broken object may be valuable and saving it is warranted. Other times – although salvageable – the cost of repair outweighs replacement or letting it go. I am guessing by now that you know I make a distinction between the two. Shattered things can’t be restored – broken things can. Why is this important? Because valuable time and effort can be spent holding on to stuff and relationships that are shattered but we want to believe they are broken.
To be clear, shattered or broken doesn’t mean that something isn’t useful. The broken glass could have been glued to a rock to decorate the yard. Two focal points in my backyard are constructed from a broken chimaera filled with bamboo stalks rising to the sky.
What is true about things is true about habits and relationships. We would do well to let things like impatience have a “humpty-dumpty” experience. Some live very anxious lives. Worry and anxiety deserve a tumble from the wall and to be left scattered on the ground. I can’t tell you what sits on the wall of your brain or heart that needs to be shattered... But I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have a shattered or broken relationship. Only you can decide what to save or discard.
Impatience, anxiety, or any other emotion aren’t bad until they disrupt more than they build up life. Shattered and/or broken relationships can be challenging. Restoration is the goal but that doesn’t always mean a return to the way things were. It might mean that the old is replaced by something new and different.
Anyway, these were some of my thoughts in the wee morning hours after shattering a glass.
PONDER THIS THOUGHT—Shattered and/or broken doesn’t necessarily mean discarded.
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