It’s Getting Dark 

We are approaching the stage of the year when we turn back time – then, quite suddenly, protracted dark nights seem to swallow daily light in a singular gulp. Our days feel shorter. We try to make the most of them. 

Meantime, parts of our hurting world are cloaked in a perpetual, brutal darkness – too deep to fathom and too vast to grasp. We know in part, but we cannot understand. 

In other ways, what may by comparison seem like a ‘diluted darkness’ can visit our own small lives at times too. And it’s okay to acknowledge our own experience without feeling guilty. Challenges of sorts, come to every door at some point, uninvited, in various guises – dressed in the fabric of life. 

And when our darkness knocks – how do we meet it? Are we afraid? 

Darkness reduces our capacity to see the way ahead. We fumble in fear of the inky black unseen, teetering at the edge of the unknown. This fear of uncertainty – common to the human experience – can bleed into a feeling of unsafety and separation. 

So how can we walk through our dark and be okay with it?

By remembering the light in our deeper connectedness perhaps…

When we can’t physically see ahead, we ‘look’ for direction through connection with our other senses in order to get our bearings. We need to FEEL our way, through what we already know to be real and true. We also draw on our heart connections in these times, opening to feel the love that strengthens, surrounds and holds us. 

“…light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”

“…perfect love drives out fear.” 

“I have loved you with an everlasting love…” 

These and other touchstones of truth are steadying forces that help to guide us. We then step forward in a tentative yet deliberate, intentional way – left foot, right foot, breathe – consciously steering our way through the darkness. This takes effort, resilience and determination. And also trust. Trust in the transient nature of our dark. Trust also in the deep truth that we are connected, held and loved, even when all seems pitch black. This truth brings light – gently kissing the face of mourning with the promise of morning. 

There is light and love to be found. Search for it. Radiate it. Even just a sliver is enough to slice open the deepest shadow, releasing a seed of hope which can, in time, begin to grow a forest of possibility. 

In a world that looks separate, we are held and connected. 

When it’s dark, look up. There’s a sky full of stars. And I think I see you. 💖

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