Broken Wings

Take these broken wings
Learn to fly again
Learn to live so free
And when we hear the voices sing
The book of love will open up
And let us in

This week’s Elephant Words story, Broken Wings, was something a little new for me. It’s a first person story that moves from being quite stark and realistic at the start, into a very symbolic and internal piece. 

I’ll admit, I was struggling for what to write. I pretty much knew where I wanted to start, a man alone, waking up, the effects of the vodka having worn off, and his attempts to smother his returning pain with more of the stuff. I think the Russian dolls in the picture sparked something too, as it encouraged me to peel back the layers of this character and examine what was going on underneath.

Beyond that, I really had nothing, and so I decided to take a walk, and as I was walking the story pretty much played itself out in my mind. To be honest, it was partly a way for me to work some stuff out that was going on with me too. I was hurting at the time, but as I went on this strange journey with the character in my story it led me back to what was important, and helped me to realise that it’s where life leads us that’s what really matters, and not necessarily how we get there. At the end of the story we see two people making a fresh start, putting the pain of the past behind them, and understanding that they both have something that is incredibly precious and wonderful – each other’s hearts.

I hope the story manages to be hopeful and uplifting without being overly sentimental.