THE ART OF REPAIR; KINTSUGI- BROKENNESS MAY NOT BE BROKENNESS AT ALL!!!

There is a Japanese artform that focuses on brokenness. Not your everyday way of mending brokenness, but an exquisite way to make something that we may see as beyond repair viable, beautiful or maybe even more beautiful than it was before. This artform is called KINTSUGI. A once broken piece of pottery is transformed. Instead of throwing it away as most of us would do, the practitioner pieces the item back together using a gold lacquer, filling in the cracks with this lacquer instead of using a common glue. This in turn makes the piece shine and glow with delightfulness. The cracks are no longer a cause to see the piece as having a blemish or deficiency, but it becomes an actual piece of striking artwork.

Someone who practices this type of repair recognizes that something or someone that is broken does not have to be looked upon as hopeless, as if there is no redeeming value in it for them, but as an opportunity to make brokenness a thing of value and beauty.

I thought about ‘Kintsugi’ as I was listening to a video commentary on relationships and how seemingly effortless it is to dispose of them without the thought of the possibility of repair. The commenter spoke about the need for emotional intelligence. Just in case you are not familiar with the term, emotional intelligence is the ability to manage your emotions in a positive way, communicate in a way that is understandable, while also being able to empathize and sympathize with the emotions of others. It seems like a simple concept, but you would be surprised at how difficult a task this is for many people.

The speaker also posited the notion that if you are looking to find someone with high emotional intelligence skills that you, yourself should be prepared to show in-kind those same qualities. She alluded to the fact that a person of this caliber would most assuredly be looking for someone who could mirror these traits back to them and therefore they would expect no less of an effort than they are giving.

Finding a partner, whether it be a romantic or friendship relationship with these qualities is rare these days. We often expect more from people than what we are willing or possibly able to give. It’s imperative though to give these principles serious consideration so as not to cause unnecessary pain for someone we may care for deeply.

So, if you have made the mistake of discarding something that may at one time have been precious to you reconsider the thought of just letting it fall by the wayside. Maybe, the brokenness in or around that individual was not real brokenness at all. Maybe they just need a little figurative gold lacquer, a little ‘Kintsugi’ applied to make them as good as new! And, maybe you could, should give second thoughts to what and how you deal with something that might be considered unrepairable! Hmmmm, food for thought indeed!