Monday, February 13, 2012

Busted Pot

Having slipped bare feet into the mud-splattered muck boots by the back door, I ventured into the below-freezing darkness that seemed to quilt the porch.  An outside light barely pushed back the night and created more shadows than visible splotches along the path.  After three confident footfalls, my boot slipped on an ice patch clinging to the second step.  A wild rush sent an electrified heart into my throat and roving arms into the banister.  Time slowed as I watched the pot I had been carrying to the kiln for its final firing pitch into the air and suddenly drop with a sickening clatter onto the hard stone walkway.

Such moments poignantly clout life from time to time, do they not, friend?  Perhaps it is the shattering glass or explosive impact of a car accident, the unexpected job loss and inability to find new employment, the last egg splattered across the floor while your child fusses for food (and only egg satisfies his palate at the time), the overwhelming panic of impending deadlines and expectations...  Could you add a few?

After the tears dry and the shards are swept, take a deep breath and venture into those other extreme emotions: an expression of love from someone who means the world to you, completing a project that has required extensive commitment and received your personal praise (even if no one else sees it), settling in awe of natural beauty perhaps at the peak of a mountain or by the lapping seashore or near the scent of garden flowers...  What softens the tension from your limbs, friend?

1 comment:

  1. It's always nice to finish a project...but the ultimate end of tension for me is coming home to be with you, sweety, after a long day at school!

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