By Shannon Caeley
Broken towers, ripped apart.
Life is full of pain; nothing is
right. All has been demolished.
How did it get this way?
Tattered and torn, broken to bits.
Was life always pain and suffering?
And yet a never-ending wave
of what it has been follows
behind. Grace upon grace,
gift upon gift, happiness and
joy used to be the lot.
Then one thing tore it down.
The thing could be a moment. A pause
in time where everything stood still,
and life was irrevocably changed.
Like a little boy’s life snuffed out by cancer,
your friend’s parents getting divorced,
or your big brother dying. Just like that
you are torn down. Destroyed.
But it started in the womb. Peaceful,
quiet growth, into the child to
become. You cried at birth.
Made your mother smile
even though you were born out of
brokenness and pain, something more,
a shoot of hope. You broke
into lives and brought joy
even in those lives’ brokenness.
And so your character was molded
block after block. And your parents
trained you to be who you were, who
you are. Life was a game. You saw
joy even in the sorrow, happiness
even through the pain.
Indeed, life was so happy it seemed
surreal, and that was fine. You often
imagined you could wake up,
your life would be gone, the joy
just a dream.
So your past was marked by the joy
you found even when sorrow was there.
But then this sorrow came, and you stopped
looking for joy. Stopped looking for
the good. But it’s there. Just build your life
back up again. Build it upon the rubble
of the past. For the rubble makes a very
firm foundation; it is what shaped
your new structure. Build it better
than it was before. The effort is worthwhile, for
it isn’t over yet. Just reconstruct block
upon block. Memory upon memory. Grace
upon grace, for it is given to you so you can
start over. Because you want your life
to be resurrected. And it will be.
The world is good at inspiring people. Including Shannon. Constantly seeing things in a different way, she wants to write them. She wants everyone to feel the joy she feels in life. She is mostly composed of dreams, flower crowns, watercolor splotches, and clicking keys. She is seventeen, participates in her family’s band as guitarist and lead vocalist, and is always down for a good book. Her reading propels her writing, and she knows that she would be nowhere without all the amazing books she’s read throughout her short life. Also, she knows she would be nowhere without the incredible God who carries her and her family through the deepest trials, with the greatest love.
This is so fabulous.. deep and inspiring. I love your thoughts and your writing.. beautiful you!
Aww thanks so much Joyce! The encouragement is always appreciated <3
Grace upon grace – even in pain. Thank you for publishing your heart thoughts Shannon. I really appreciate the poem. Please keep writing and sharing!
Shannon, I appreciate your message in poetry from a precious ❤️. Please keep writing and sharing your heart this way.
Love, Grandma
Thanks Grandma, so glad you liked it 🙂
Beautiful!! I love the second half especially. <3
Thank so much Emma! Yes I really enjoyed writing the second half 🙂
Very pretty! 🙂 Thank you for sharing and keep writing!
Thanks for the encouragement, Dakota! You can bet I will 🙂
Oh, wow that was beautiful!!!
Thanks Ariel!
Thanks for sharing that poem. We all get broken down at some point. And I appreciate the reminder to look for the good things. Hopefully I let God build me up again this time, because only he can make me as I was meant to be.
That’s so true Rachel. I’m so glad it encouraged you!
Shannon, this was lovely. Wow. I cannot tell you how much this touched me with its truth and the simple way you laid forth life’s joys and struggles. And that last line hit home so well. Love this <3 Keep it up in the faith, Shannon!
Thanks so much Libby. I’m so blessed by your words. <3