Vulnerabilis

a new winged key assemblage

This is my latest "winged key" assemblage. This one is called "vulnerabilis" and speaks of how sometimes we get hurt, betrayed, abused, but we feel we have to soldier through it all and keep going anyway. So we lock up our heart and soul like fragile butterflies. "Safely", behind glass, standing still, maybe visible, but untouchable. Too vulnerable.

We protect ourselves, we pretend. We cringe if someone comes too close. We recoil. We put up signs that say "handle with care" or even better, don't touch me at all. Don't break the glass. Love, friendship, a helping hand, empathy, intimacy? Entering the danger zone. And we get used to it, living behind the glass, seeing life through the glass. We make it home.

And yet, being vulnerable, truly vulnerable, is something different. It doesn't mean we're too fragile for life. It means mustering up the strength to let ourselves be seen, heard and touched again. Owning our story, daring to let this butterfly spread its wings, alive. Vulnerability doesn't mean weakness, it means courage.

But when we're so used to our pretty cage, our self-inflicted imprisonment, it's not easy to open it and take flight. Yet it's not sealed forever, somehow we know there is a way out, we hold the key. And maybe, if we let ourselves dare to trust again, someone will gently help us unlock it from outside. And we'll feel the wind again.

The "winged keys" are an assemblage series. I add a new one from time to time. You can see the other pieces HERE.

Wishing you a good flight today...