A little confession before we begin: I’ve been trying to write this post for a long time. It’s been a draft for a few years, but I think about it often. I’m not sure why this idea has such a hold on me. I’m even less sure I’ll be able to communicate it to you effectively. But I’ll try.
In late 2020, my husband and I were living in Japan. It was our last full year in the country, and we had wanted to travel and check a few sites off our list. Then the pandemic hit, and although we didn’t experience the pandemic like the States, we did have a lot of the same restrictions.
It was a tough year for many reasons.
Finding Inspiration in a Thrift Store
After some of our travel restrictions lifted, we took the train to Tokyo. We ended up in Shimo-Kitazawa, known for its fashion and thrift stores. Thrifting in Japan is different than in the States, and I didn’t really expect to find much.
As I remember it, we were walking around. We might not have even formally stopped inside this store, but something about it caught my eye. Just inside the shop, folded neatly on a table and sitting atop a pile of other clothing, I saw a hoodie.
Honestly, the last thing I need in my closet is another hoodie. (If you know me in real life, you know I often dress for comfort over style.) But something about it spoke to me.
It was sitting there, right in the front, like it was waiting for me. The heathered light grey fabric is one of my preferred colors, and the green writing called to me.
“Crushed and created.”
At first, I thought it was kind of silly. A mistranslation of something from Japanese into English, or a use of words that wasn’t quite right. But the more I looked at it, the more I liked it.
A Silly Saying with a Deeper Meaning
Years later, this hoodie is still one of my favorites. I don’t know why I love it so much. There really isn’t anything special about it. I’ve even tried to find information about the company online.
But something about that message – crushed and created – resonates with me on a deep level.
Maybe it’s because it was so timely. We had all just spent the better part of a year holed up in our houses. The news was often nothing but numbers and images of death and suffering. For the first time in my lifetime, the entire world was battling the same thing together. Collectively, we were crushed.
But throughout that year, there were glimmers of hope. We heard that, with only a few cars on the road, the smog in populated cities cleared. Families spent more time together than ever before. For the first time, many of us had time to be creative and dig into new hobbies.
Out of the overwhelming fear and uncertainty came light and beauty. Out of the ashes rose a phoenix.
We’re All Crushed…
A year of pandemic living made me tired. Being constantly on edge, not knowing when things might go from bad to worse, is exhausting. I feel similarly about our current social/political climate. Everything feels frantic and chaotic.
I know I’m not the only one who feels the heaviness of the world right now.
Just like I did a few years ago, I think about this hoodie with the green writing and the seemingly silly phrase “crushed and created” splashed on the front.
We can often feel crushed in life.
Situations beyond our control, the grind of daily life, and the ever-changing nature of being a living, breathing human can leave us feeling weary. And we won’t always know why. We can’t always pinpoint why we’re feeling run-down, defeated, or deflated.
But maybe the crushing is necessary. Sometimes things are broken so they can be remade better.
Seeds, buried in the soil, spend time in darkness before a plant can bloom into the light. Clay is pounded, mixed, and softened before it takes on a new shape. Rocks are chiseled and broken before they become something new.
…and Created
The crushing I can relate to. But what comes next matters just as much, if not more.
Created.
The breaking apart isn’t in vain, or random and wild. It’s on purpose. To be created implies there’s a plan in place (whether we’re aware of it or not). The idea of being creative, of creating something, invokes images of color, purpose, passion, and joy. We are all creators. When we cook, write, garden, or decorate our home, we are creating.
Creating isn’t something that just happens, at least for me. It often requires work, even if that work looks like turning an idea over in my head until I’m ready to take action. Creation is a process.
These three words have been echoing in my head like a mantra for weeks – crushed and created. They came to me at just the right time, and continue to inspire me. These three words give me a line to grab onto when the crushing feels like too much.
It’s become an almost tangible reminder that creation is coming. Perhaps there is a reason for the suffering. Something new, better, and different is on its way.
I (we) won’t be crushed forever. I am becoming something new.
