The Gems in Brokenness
By Sandy Clarisse
Here I stand at the altar
of my soul,
my inner priestess, fragmented—
scattering pieces
of my offering
across the depths
of my soul's infinite essence,
like shards of broken glass
tossed into the perfect
abyss of the ocean.
At my divine altar,
I bear witness
to those discarded parts
I harbour in darkness,
in the shameful, hidden recesses
of my being.
A reflection that unseals
the mirror of pain, concealed.
Within me,
in sacred agony...
I kneel.
An incessant flow of tears—
outpouring over these parts
forged in the fire
of my fears;
a purging sacrifice,
a release of my heart.
I see their beauty—
these forsaken pieces of me,
absorbed into the love I am,
in true glory.
Just as the glass fragments,
once dispersed,
integrate into the ocean's embrace—
gems of such elegance—
the shining sea glass
reflects my transformed brilliance.
As I lie bare
on the altar of my heart,
the "never-enough"
embraces wholeness;
the toxic pleaser
moves into her authentic self,
the silenced one
finds her empowered voice,
the rag doll
sets her boundaries,
the doormat
rises in her dignity.
In the same way, the shards of glass,
being rocked in love's vast ocean,
transform with care
into sea glass jewels,
each a story beyond compare,
each a gem my soul rises to wear.