Good Morning Beautiful People
“It’s okay to break. What matters is what you do with the pieces.” — Maria Hagberg
I broke a mug this morning. To say I was upset is an understatement. It was one of my favorites. I have several mugs—somewhere around a hundred (we don’t judge here). Most of them are Disney-themed, as was this one. But this one also had plants on it and said, “I be-leaf in you.”
I love a good pun. And plants. This was a top-ten mug. Could I get a new one? Sure. But that’s not the point of this story.
As I stood there with ceramic scattered across the countertop, I heard Matt call out, “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I said.
He paused and replied, “But you’re sad.”
He was right. I was.
Then he said something that stopped me in my tracks: “It’s okay. What’s important is you’re okay.”
In that moment, I had flashes of all the times in my life when hearing those exact words would have saved me from years of fear and self-criticism. I remember hearing, “You’re so clumsy,” or “Why don’t you watch what you’re doing?” And I know, somewhere along the way, I probably said those same words to my kids before I realized—it’s okay. We all make mistakes.
Now, I would never get upset with my grandkids for spilling or breaking something. I’d smile, tell them it’s okay, and help them clean it up.
As I’ve entered my healing—my soft-girl era, if you will—I’ve learned a few things. I can’t live in the “I wish I would have” moments because they wreck me every time. You know the ones:
“I wish I would have spoken to my kids with more patience.” “I wish I would have been more present.”
I can’t change the past. But I can do better now—with my grandkids, with my family, and with myself.
It only took me 54 years to learn this: it’s okay to break. What matters is what you do with the pieces.
Have you ever seen a mosaic table? It’s made of hundreds of broken pieces—each one unique, each one essential. Together, they form something beautiful.
Maybe that’s the metaphor for my life. All the broken pieces I’ve gathered and put back together have helped me find the good in my life.
And I hope that as you clean up your own shattered pieces, you too can Find the Good in Your Life.
Find The Good In Your Life 