Encouragement 4 The Day: "Still Standing"

Abandoned buildings remind me of us and of life. As this world wages its war…a crack develops, stones create broken windows and we show the scars. Yet, from the trials, pain and sorrows of life a deeper beauty emerges…“Weathered Beauty.” 

The lines etched into our faces, the graying hairs, the wounds in our flesh and hearts tell the story. The bodies ravaged by disease, the hearts crushed by pain, the calloused hands and missing limbs are the scribes. They tell the world …we’ve been beaten and torn by life but like these abandoned buildings... “WE ARE STILL STANDING!”

As you read the poem “Still Standing” and view pictures of these beautiful old farmhouses, I dare you to look past the cracks, the holes, the sagging walls and the broken windows. I challenge you to acknowledge the weathered beauty in you designed by life.

"Still Standing"

Callous observers stare in disdain.

Looking through their eyes…

 I am a “once was”

And what remains seems;

Pitiful,

Broken.

I’ve weathered storms, I’ve braced against stones.

My creaks and groans,

Are often heard in the wind.

Bruised and battered

Yet somehow,

Defiant.

Proud.

To one side I may lean,

Fragile, Torn, Strained even Broken

But…

“Still Standing”.