And she watched helplessly as her dream came crashing down like a crystal vase knocked off a table unintentionally.

When hope falters at the fragility of life, faith in God wavers. Everything is questioned. Perception changed as if the very Earth shifted silently and quickly and noticeably. What was a firm foundation, has now became a heaving mirage throwing everything out of focus.

And he wonders at the path they travel now that all he has known is shaken, fallen, broken.

The grief can overcome in a moment where lungs can find no air, eyes can see no light, and the very room seems like a grave. In the overwhelming flood of pain and hurt, we can only sigh and shed tears. Crystalline tears fall releasing hormones to calm the body. This holy God who numbers tears and holds these them sacred, created wild ways for a man to grieve.

And they face uncertainty and confusion as they consider the God who changes not and knows the future.

I wrote this poem below at a time when my world shifted dark. The foundations I once relied on were gone, replaced with fear and uncertainty. My world suffered a storm that shook my core and destroyed relationships. In the eye, in a moment, I saw the Redeemer of the lost and lonely. And I knew that through my grief, joy would come.

when I reflect on the turns my life has taken

it chills me to know that my life is beyond my control

my life is clay with mercy from on high

but only as I meditate on the Truth

when I ponder on what living has done to my beliefs

it hardens me to believe that my foundations were shattered

my beliefs are illusions yet grace from the throne

but only as I focus on the Source of all life

when I imagine how I wanted and believed my life to be

it destroys me to comprehend that I am like all of God’s sinful creations

my dreams are fantasies filled with hope for the future

but only as I dream the revealed knowledge sent to me

Perhaps, the reason we go through horrid times is to help shine the Light to others. Pain and grief are the commodity of a sinful, fallen world. One thing I learned in my own grieving, allow the one grieving the time and space they need to release their hurt and pain and anger heals more than advice and fake smiles.

When tears and sighing overwhelm, what restores a soul is the quiet spirit that simply sits with the hurting.

Every day, someone is hurting. Give grace to those you interact with. Sigh with them. And release the crystalline tears that soothe the raw soul.

All photos were taken at the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum in Seattle, WA in 2019.