When the Darkness Comes

“I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being.” ~Hafiz

We all spend time in the shadows. No matter how our lives unfold on the path in front is us, there are times we dance in darkness.

We are taught that we need to push it inside, hide the shadows and our feelings that rise towards them. In a world where "light" is celebrated, these times in the shade are looked upon with scrutiny, disdain and judgement.

Darkness can be a place of deep learning, where we dive into a well of truth, and of the hidden secrets that we have tried to drown. Here in the basement of ourselves we store all that is deemed "unworthy and unacceptable" by society and tell ourselves it never needs to be seen.

We place what we ourselves do not wish to see in these chains. With so many of us with such full basements, one would think that there is nothing that needs to be judged since we're all in the same boat. We should be applauding one another.

There is a rich experience of learning about ourselves in this place of expansion and growth. Like the ebb and flow of the tides upon the shore our lives wax and wane, so does the light and the shadow.

There is nothing to be ashamed of when moving the paths that wind their way deep in the darkness of our own labyrinths. Embracing every part of ourselves, both light and shadow, is powerful medicine.

The times that we move through in life that are challenging and difficult do happen, but they are not meant to label who we are. We are more than the things that we have had to deal with on this road of life, and no matter what has happened we are worthy of all the happiness this world has to offer.

Do not let yourself be defined by your shadow. Let yourself be defined by your truth.

I believe a path of growth isn't a path to getting everything about you perfect but in shining a torch on all of the things that we hide within ourselves.

All the sore spots of unworthiness, of sadness, of hurt and of pain and saying "come here, I love you" to these fragments of ourselves we leave behind.

This doesn't mean you are broken. This doesn't mean you are unworthy. It means you are human.

Once we start to go through them, the boxes in storage marked "Do Not Open", these "shadows" within us become something that we feel and begin to integrate into the wholeness of who we are.

Yes they hurt. They hurt like hell. How much more do they hurt when we ignore them? Do they magically go away if we pretend they're not there? Does numbing ourselves make everything disappear? No. They create huge issues for us in our lives, they create blocks and walls making us prisoners.

The process of moving through these boxes are different for everyone. Some people can make a lot of headway by sorting through them on their own, seeing them and embracing them. In this movement of fully feeling what has been hidden, there is a lot of healing.

Some people need some help unpacking what is in each box, going through a much more in-depth process of delving into the shadows. Again, this is their path and nothing to be ashamed or shunned of.

We all spend time in darkness, at one point or another in our lives. One way to make it easier for your fellow travelers on the road of life is to not judge what others are going through as they sort through their own baggage.

It's not our jobs to decide how someone sifts through their own nor is it our job to do it for them. Shine the light of love and acceptance instead.

We're all in this together and at some point, you will be going through your own boxes and a little light will be appreciated.

"By delving into our shadows and merging them into us and integrating what they are here to teach, we free up the focus and energy to allow all that is our truth to come to us. Our shadows are not blocks within us, but potent knowledge that we are here to learn and embrace." ~Ara

 

 

 

Photo Credit: Elena Vizerskaya