Healing comes in the form of scars. As we take on life, we gather these marks, some you see and some you don’t. And as we heal, we are not the same. We adapt so we don’t experience certain things again, or so we might experience them differently. Sometimes, this teaches us to mitigate risks, but sometimes, it prevents us from taking them when letting our guard down could mean letting in something great. Scars are pieces shaped by subtraction. We decide what to fill them with. We can ignore our wounds and let them fester and scab with debility, or we can confront them by analyzing their cause, our reaction; by filling them with understanding and growth that allows them to become gilded strengths rather than impairments. Honoring our vulnerabilities is a careful balance between protecting life and allowing ourselves to be open to it.Every mark becomes a part of us, and those scars remind us how deeply human we are. This not only makes them so strikingly beautiful, but powerful. They can destroy us or make us stronger, open us to our cores. And at that core is something that cannot be broken, only hidden. An inextinguishable light exists inside of you—your scars are opportunities to let it shine through. ✨SLWKintsugi Oil, metal, and mica on basswood
12”x16”
 
Satin varnish
Cradled basswood panel comes ready to hang