#14: “What is Darkness, in the World of Light that I see?”
Weeks ago, I wrote about “planting seeds of light” in this world with my work. It occurred to me that where there is light, there is also dark - a yin to a yang.
Darkness is constantly around us, in both subtle and blatantly obvious ways.
Darkness to me is the comforting parts of life - the necessary gentleness to help ground me from the day.
As a night owl, I’ve spent much of my waking life in the darkness of the night, when many of us are resting quietly. In fact, things are often quietest in the darkness of the night, with a different orchestra of nighttime sounds.
In the end, it became a comforting and enjoyable part of my day, to stay up until the stars come out and the world goes to sleep - because sleep means that I have the joy of solitude, to recenter my self, and I have fewer stimulations.
As a naturally sensitive individual, the world around me can often be overstimulating - even with the decades of grounding and self-soothing techniques, it can be too much for me.
As long as I’m not exhausted and running on empty, the night is when I feel most calm and soothed, because it’s the necessary gentleness that helps me to appreciate the hustle and bustle of daytime activity.
Like in many cases, darkness and light is about balance. However, it’s in the light that we see real, substantial change - and that’s the power of the sun. In the dark, if we can learn to trust it, can provide us reprieve and rest - that’s the softer potential of darkness.
This is a subject I wouldn’t mind coming back to someday, but these are my current thoughts and reflections on the subject.
Hope this helped you think about something new today!
Titled “Shooting Stars (2023)”, this photo is part of my new “Motion Commotion: The Island Lights” Collection. Without the darkness of the night, I wouldn’t have been able to produce an image with such a strong accent of light in the center. To appreciate the light, we need the dark, and to truly appreciate the dark, we need to think about its subtle qualities that we otherwise overlook.