We tend to assume that anything large, old or well defended is also strong. Ask what is fragile and doesn't know, and the answer is often something that has been holding up for years: a role, or a version of ourselves we have never had to test. What it doesn't know is usually the part that takes a while to find.
What in my life looks strong but might not be? Why do the things I protect hardest feel the most breakable? How would I know what's fragile before it breaks? Is it a weakness to be gentle with something that seems fine?
I spent years as the person who held everything up. It looked like strength to the people around me, and to me. I didn't know how thin some of it was until something small pressed on it. What am I carrying that has never been pressed on?
Something can only be fragile and not know it if it has never been touched. A belief nobody has questioned. A story about who I am that runs well as long as no one looks closely. What would happen if I looked first?
It might not be mine at all. Someone near me could be carrying something breakable that I've assumed was fine, because they never said otherwise. Who has been holding steady for so long that nobody thinks to ask?
The body keeps a record of this. A jaw held a little too firmly, a stiffness in the shoulders that arrives in certain rooms. Where does the guarding show up for me, and what is it guarding?
There's also the question of gentleness. Handling something carefully doesn't make it weaker. Is there something I've been treating as tough because that was easier than treating it with care?
What if the fragile thing is simply doing its best with what it knows? What changes when I stop expecting it to know more?
I wrote about the roles that fit like skin and the ones that cling like armour in What does your armour cost your soul? (And how you can reclaim it).
If this one brought something up and you feel comfortable sharing it, I'd like to hear it. Private, under your name, or anonymous, whichever feels right to you.
Drawn from Creative Space prompts and here for you to explore whenever you like. Members have access to the full Seed Bank; guests can access today's seed. To join me live in a Creative Space session, register on Luma.
Explore