Cracks

Behold! a Kintsugi
tea cup,
An imperfection in fired clay.

Let it rest
before even a sip of liquid
is brought to mind
Let it be
between the two palms of your hands while
Contemplating cracks –

Trace the tracks for
a single unknown
Artisan perceived before
He or She even began
to mend
And wish to bring together
such discarded
broken halves

What once was broken
Is brought back to
Life;
What once was damaged goods –
thrown, tossed out –
left to be forgotten

But revived
in beauty of
another kind and
cherished precisely for
reminding us of First Forms, no longer
Vulnerable –

No longer ignored:
what once were cracks
Are made now bold;
Are made now gold.

©Peggy Schneider

Painting by ©Ana Ludovico, August 2023