January 2025 – Another new beginning. Another awakening to what is possible in life. I traveled to the desert and had reiki – an energetic healing – that calmed my senses and aligned my chakras, leaving me peaceful. I took a class with Lyndi Rivers called The Beauty of Imperfection: The Art of Kintsugi. Originated in Japan in the 14th century, Kintsugi is the appreciation of the imperfect and transient nature of the world. Broken pottery is mended using glue, gold lacquer or resin to paint over cracks, chips and holes. In life everyone experiences brokenness, or hurts that leave us changed, feeling that we may never be whole again. Kintsugi accepts and even relishes this upset and the way we put ourselves back together. I brought two small pieces of pottery that had fallen and cracked at home. When I attempted to glue the pieces together, they didn’t fit exactly. That was a strong message to me about not trying to force the pieces together or deny that things change. Rather, glue the pieces as they are; carefully paint gold lacquer over the uneven seams, and celebrate the reworking of original wholeness.

I follow Tomomi Kamoshita on IG. She works in her studio in Tokyo, incorporating a modernized kintsugi technique, utilizing brass powder mixed with urushi, a Japanese lacquer, in her ceramics. Rather than simply repairing a pre-existing cup or dish, she includes foreign materials such as sea glass to produce a new work of art. This creative form of kintsugi is called yobitsugi; yobi means “to call,” and tsugi means “to connect.” In 2019, she published a book on her kintsugi artworks, KINTSUGI – Seeing Light Through the Cracks. @tomomikamoshita

I send a Kintsugi prayer to all souls who have been broken by the LA fires. We will survive, we will be stronger, wiser and more connected when we put ourselves back together.

Ashé

Broken and Repaired

Night of Courage