-The Jeweller-
'I like it, but it is a pretty dangerous thing to do'. Not that focussing on the jewel amidst the darkness is not beautiful, just that to ignore the truth of the context in which that jewel shines is to be absent in truth somehow. It is as if to say, 'all that other stuff, it doesn't matter! we will ignore it and in ignorance it will simply fade away'... but that rarely happens. Not only is it semi delusional, and in a way judgemental, but it also speaks of a kind of travesty of perception, a lack of sincerity and humility, as if you are saying, 'that darker stuff that surrounds you, well, that doesn't matter', but of course, it does matter. It is someone's life, and that matters, all the tawdry little moments matter, all the quirks and hard to bare iniquities matter, they matter because they didn't just come from nowhere, they have a story too, and though that story is hard to hear, though that story may be washed with pain and suffering, still it is life, and for that person, it mattered; It mattered so much, that they took it upon themselves in the guise of a dark shroud, one that is hard to bare and uncomfortable to look at, but still it mattered. Yes that jewel is beautiful, but we are not stone collectors, fashioning the uncut gems we find in others for our own device and pleasure, rather, accepting the darkness too, listening to it's story also, gives context to the jewels we find, and gives honour to the life we share, the whole life, not just the parts we find easy to look at, and in so doing, we give honour to that person we love, giving love, even to the darkness we may find, and the stories that it tells. 'The stars shine brightly within the firmament, set in the night as jewels upon the sky, and never brighter were all those celestial ornaments, than when in darkness the twinkling diamonds caught my eye.'
© Richard Michael Parker 2015
