Fragile
Monday, 11th May 2009
How is it possible that you can loose everything in a moment? Sufficiently inspired by the melancholic tunes of Snow Patrol I ponder the fact that joy should not have an expiry date. Should not be contained in something so fragile, that it can broken any moment. The label on the outside of the container warns if the contents are expendable.
“Fragile” it reads, “This way up.” Does it matter if you brake when your world is upside down , inside out, the wrong way around? Can you fix something that has been smashed into a thousand pieces? Would superglue, lots of effort and time do the trick? How do you glue someone’s heart back together again or restore trust that has been broken? What kind of glue can be used to mend the inner workings of a human being? How do you stick a soul back together again? They say time is the healer of all things, is that really so? Can time heal the cracks and chips on china? Will glue restore the clarity in clear crystal glass? Once broken, I guess always broken. Scars are after all souvenirs and evidence of previous hurts. I always try to fix things. I always believe something is worth saving. In the words of the movie Sea Biscuit “You don’t throw a whole life away just because it is banged up a little bit.”
All my furniture have been rescued, restored and given a second chance where others would not have given a second thought or a second glance. I know the bumps and the grains of the wood on every desk cupboard or chair. I am familiar with hidden damages that somehow add to the charm and character of every piece. My hands have sanded down the wood and varnished every inch, and therefore every inch is precious to me. So restoration is possible, but usually requires an investment of time and energy. My mother used to say as we were growing up, that she wish she could hide us away from the harsh world in a glass box filled with cotton wool to keep us safe. What she probably meant was: stick a sticker on her kids saying “fragile- handle with care” and hope against all odds that people will treat you as such. I for one have a horrendous time trusting that airport personnel will indeed heed the label. You receive your parcel with the arrow pointing down and you hope against all odds that whatever was inside is still intact.
It seems unfair that our very lives are contained in such perishable containers. This world is harsh. This world will kill you. You start dying the moment you are born. In truth we are all fragile inside out. Whether male or female, young or old, we all carry the same fragility in body and soul. We all live in houses of glass. We all have been dropped by poor handling or damaged by life in one way or another. Once again secret fears of getting hurt testify to our fear of hurt. We are all woven from the same thread and thus the same moral fiber runs through us all. It encompasses us and defines us. We play our different parts in the great scheme of things but the threads are interwoven to form a pattern in the grand design of the carpet. It’s impossible for a thread to comprehend and see the whole design - only the weaver can stand back and appreciate the finished product. Housed in jars of clay we are in the truest sense only human.
If we realize others are just as fragile as we are, we might treat ourselves and others more gently. We might have more patience and forgiveness. In the same way as the furniture I described above, our imperfections and flaws testify to our need of our Creator and Restorer. Our weaknesses were placed in us on purpose!! It’s our little reminder that we do need the help and the abilities of others where we fall short. We need to be merciful towards ourselves and others. In my closet is the reminder “Treating myself like a precious object will make me strong.” Sometimes we can be our own worst enemies by treating ourselves unkind or returning the harsh treatment of others. Allow me to wrap you in cotton wool and tell you how precious you are, if you are unable to see your own beauty and worth, let me tell you what I can clearly see on the outside of the container that contains you… “Fragile. Handle with care.”