The Beauty of Doors
By RM
RM worked for 17 years in Central Asia and now lives with his wife in Londonistan, working among Muslims, and using the arts to build community and bridges to Jesus. In this blog he captures the beauty and mystery of doors as metaphors for the second half of life.
I’ve worked as a creative professional (graphic designer) for 25 years. A creative gun for hire. 2nd Half Collaborative (2HC) was instrumental in my return to creating work that was just for me – and more importantly, didn’t earn me any money!
In May of this year, a colleague and I, desiring to share the gospel creatively with immigrants in London, sponsored an art exhibit on the theme of thresholds, an important transition stage for immigrants and for me as well as I re-enter my passport country.
Doors have always fascinated me - from an aesthetic perspective and for the deeper questions they represent. Doors in the second half of life speak to both the internal work we do, and the external opportunities that arise.
Using my photographs and artwork, I will illustrate how I apprehend the symbolism and significance of doors in the second half of life.
Doors we have left behind
This collage of doors I exhibited in London are all doors photographed in Xinjiang, China in the mid 2000s before foreigners were dissuaded from living and working there. Some are weather-beaten and faded, others are intricately carved. Some are entrances to mosques, while another guards a mausoleum. All are doors that few people will get to see now. Indeed their 'owners' may not have seen them for a long time if they have been incarcerated in the work camps that now proliferate in Xinjiang.
Reflection for our readers:
Recall “doors” you have left: doors that represent opportunities, vision, family, places, work, to name a few. The leaving may have been your choice or not. Notice what thought or emotion or spontaneous prayer arises as you reflect.
Doors that challenge and invite
As well as the beauty of the doors, I have always enjoyed the binary, yet mysterious nature of them. A door is either open or shut. On or off. But a closed door may not be locked, so were we to take our courage in both hands and push the door, it may open. But onto what? What is on the other side of the door?
Open or closed, there is an element of courage needed to approach a door. Do we have an invitation to the place it guards? Have we passed signs saying 'Forbidden' in order to get to the door? Do we know the person within? Are we working at the place behind the door? Or are we simply exploring?
Doors in Central Asia can be daunting prospects. There is rarely any indication as to the business of the building with the door in it. There is rarely any glass through which to discern whether there is one - or a thousand! - people behind the door.
Reflection for our readers
As you read the paragraph above, notice the words that strike you and your responses to them: do they represent a 2nd half of life challenge, an invitation or something else?
Externally, there have been many doors to choose from as I've transitioned from a familiar location overseas to an unfamiliar location in my passport country. People have been very keen to welcome us into the new opportunities for which our experience, abilities and passions are suited.
Do we go through familiar doors, or do we explore others? How do we know what the door will lead to - both in the short-term and long-term? How much do the visuals of the door influence our decision to open it, leave it closed, or go through it?
Doors of the heart
I've become much more contemplative as a result of 2HC, and the idea of opening the door of my heart to Jesus in order to sit and share a meal with him (Rev 3:20) is something I seek to make a daily reality. That verse comes at the end of a stinging rebuke to the church in Laodicea, and the focus on the work of 'being' rather than only doing in 2HC has been really powerful.
Doors allow us to enter into new or familiar spaces. Not only that, they allow us to leave them too!
Curiosity and obedience are key when apprehending doors in the second half of life.
Reflection for our readers
Like this author, you may want to do your own creative work around doors. Photograph them, collage them, draw them …. And explore what they evoke in you about the beauty, challenges, invitations and the heart work of your 2nd half of life.
All photos are property of RM, and may not be used without permission
