Tainted

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “tainted”? Poisonous, contaminated, ruined? But what if tainted means the start of something new? When animals die or become road kill they start to decay, bringing foul odors from so much decay, yet the decay brings back life to the world. Flesh being eaten preserves life’s energy. The organs fertilize the seeds for grass to grow. The air whips away the smell of tainted meat rotting, as the sun grows hotter. Maggots feast until they’re flies. When nothing is left of the tainted carcass, they fly away. Blood feeds the soil which causes a new beginning of flowers, grass, and trees. The old tainted life can turn into a beautiful new start. In life, just because something is contaminated, or tainted, doesn’t necessarily mean that it is unusable, but it could be something greater than what was left behind.