… see how the flesh grows back across a wound, with great vehemence, more strong than the simple, untested surface before. There’s a name for it on horses, when it comes back darker and raised: proud flesh, as all flesh is proud of its wounds, wears them as honors given out after battle, small triumphs pinned to the chest.
– Jane Hirshfield
How beautiful! Great reminder.
My brother had a horrible fall rock climbing when he was in high school..broke his back, his collar bone, lacerated his head and face, including the main artery in his cheek. He had to have multiple surgeries and it was all very traumatic, but in the end he was so lucky not to have permanent damage…just a body full of scars. He wears them proudly and says they represent both stupidity and triumph. The result of bad choices (to rock climb without equipment…a parent’s worst nightmare!) but also to come back more appreciative, more grounded and with a greater clarity about his life than ever before. They are indeed his battles wounds…a representation of the day that his life changed. He is, in fact, proud of them.
What a lovely quote. It made me think that we should wear both our physical and emotional scars with pride. All of experiences, good and bad make us who we are today.
The perfect quote for a day of many memories. A day when I think of home, where you are, Lindsey.
Oh, this quote really SPOKE to me… I’m working on a novel and it has so much to do with scars and pain and endurance of love. I looked up the quote and was blown away by the poem it is from. Thank you for this gift of words and inspiration.
-Dana