03 Jul Recovery is golden

Kintsugi – also known as Kintsukuroi – is the ancient Japanese technique of repairing broken pottery with a special lacquer dusted with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. Beautiful seams of gold glint in the cracks of ceramic ware, giving a unique appearance to the piece.

This repair method celebrates each artifact’s unique history by emphasizing its fractures and breaks, instead of hiding or disguising them. Kintsugi often makes the repaired piece even more beautiful than it was originally, revitalizing it.

In recovery, doesn’t our “brokenness” make us more beautiful? We have fallen; we may be chipped, cracked, and broken. But we are healing, putting ourselves together to be stronger and more exquisite than ever. We don’t apologize for our imperfections; we don’t let our past define us. We let our experiences shape us. We can choose to be ourselves, love ourselves. We celebrate our “golden scars” because they are a preciously part of who we are.

“Ring the bells that can still ring

Forget your perfect offering.

There is a crack in everything.

That’s how the light gets in.”

– Leonard Cohen, Anthem