Chapter 13 — Absence

The lotus flower is born in the mud.
Not in spite of it.
But because of it.

Its roots feed
on the dark, dense depths —
on what no one wants to touch.

And it's exactly there —
in what seemed useless,
filthy,
disposable —
that it draws
what it needs to bloom.

No deep beauty
is born from comfort.
No true strength
is forged in calm.

The day that falls apart.
The plan that fails.
The absence that aches.
The ground that gives way.

These aren't the end.
They're the depths
that hold up
the beauty of the flower
still to come.