Ring the Bells

ring-the-bellsRing the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack in everything

That’s how the light gets in

That’s how the light gets in

I started this as a piece of art that would spend a long time as a work in progress. I had a big vision of how I would transform this space into a beautiful, broken, spectacle. How I would take this hastily lopped off and lopsided tree and balance its harsh lines with my thoughtfully placed art to soften it.

But instead it is draped with tangled yarn and pine needles the children threw at it along with a fair amount of neglectful glances I have tossed it’s way. It’s not at all the vision I had and I don’t think it could ever be more beautiful than it is now. But you probably looked at this and immediately saw beauty because you didn’t see it in stark contrast to the picture in my head. I had to look a little harder and a little longer to find the beauty. But I see it now.

I wanted to share the story of this because I know this is what my life feels like sometimes and maybe yours does too. The vision of what it was suppose to be fading into the chaos of what it is. I planned for copper globes, shining glass beads, bells that chime with the most perfect, soothing tone. What is this dirty yarn and these sticky pine needles doing in my sacred space?!

Dropping love notes is what I’ve learned. An artful expression of this season of my life. A gentle suggestion to laugh at myself more often. A reminder that life is actually a chaotic, messy, beautiful thing.

If you too feel, even sometimes, that this was NOT your plan, that you had something better in store for yourself, I only want you to know that you still have bells and that soon light WILL creep in through all these cracks.

The cracking open though, it’s painful I know. Stay with it. Don’t run for the plaster. Don’t muffle your ears to the creaking and splitting. Don’t frantically place buckets to keep the rain contained.  Know that I am here to bear witness to your renovations.  I am here to listen to the creaking and the cracking alongside you.

Let it crack. Let it open. It’s how the light gets in.

With love & support for your journey,

image1

 

Melissa @TheWatershedFarm.com

Hello! I'm Melissa! I live, work, and play here at the farm. Occasionally I write about it. Less often I publish it. Thanks for being here to receive those rare moments. I appreciate you!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.