Hearts Unbroken

Tim McGraw sings a song with the following lyrics:

No one ever left me out in the rain
Cold words still remain unspoken
And I never got lost, spent years in the dark
You're here, now my heart's unbroken

The song, sung to a lover, is about the restorative aspects of found happiness. The pain of the past is melted away in the overwhelming goodness of the current joy. The good of today wipes away the tears of yesterday.

While each of us may wish for a love like that, I'm not entirely convinced it exists and the weird thing is, I think that's a good thing. I have a friend who thinks everyone should have the heart broken at least once - it helps them appreciate future love. I tend to agree with her. But that's not the only reason I think a heart unbroken would be less-than-ideal. A heart unbroken is a heart that's never sacrificed, that's never grieved, that's never bled. A heart unbroken is a heart that has never wept for another, who's never known grace, who is mindful of only its seeming completeness. We tend to justify pain as the force to give us the ability to recognize good, but pain in its own right has benefits. It shows us that we are human, that we are fragile and that this life is incomplete. Just as physical pain warms us when we are causing ourselves are, emotional pain should give us heed. It helps us recognize what's bad, as well as appreciate the good. Not only does it tell us that there are better things ahead, it demonstrates that this life isn't it.

A broken heart is never fun but it is instructive. A heart unbroken would just never know it.