Beauty in the Damage

I was scrolling through the photos on my computer the other night and I came across the one you see featured in this post. I took that photo in college. This photo is a of a little 2″x2″ metal square I was to use in a lab experiment for one of my classes. I don’t remember anything about the lab. I can’t even tell you what class this was for. I don’t know what type of metal this square was made out of. I just know, this little square was involved and I was absolutely in love with it.

What’s on the square is rust. It’s damaged–and rightly so with all the experiments it went through. It’s probably not worth anything. If it wasn’t used for this experiment, it would likely get thrown away. Yet, I placed high value on it. Why?

Because of the damage.

Take a look to really view the photo. Look at the way the damage is patterned out. They almost look like stars in a cosmic cloud or cells bumping into each other or even flowers growing in a field. They’re messy and tangled and the hues of reddish-brown span the spectrum. You can’t see it from the photo, but when I shifted the way light hit that metal square, it came alive. The silver lining in the rust spots amplified the damage like beams of magic bursting forth. I saved these photos because I wanted to replicate the pattern in a painting. I haven’t done it yet, but someday, I will.

If you put this damaged square next to a shiny new one, one that is perfect and reflective, and bright, I would still pick the damaged one. It has character. It has a story. It’s been through some things and it’s still strong.

So, if you’re ever feeling damaged or covered in rust, I hope you’ll remember this little square. There’s beauty there even if you can’t see it.