Darkness has long been associated with evil and suffering – as in dark forces and dark night of the soul. The season reminds me of another darkness – a darkness at the center of our being – a profound silence, the fertile emptiness of an eternal now, a haven, an oasis, a womb that - moment by moment - nurtures, births and transforms us.
As the days grow shorter and the nights longer, we are invited to rest in this deep, gentle, healing quiet. At 2am this morning, a poem came.
Befriending Darkness
The season of darkness
calls us inward
calls us home.
A cozy home
awaits us
warms us
wombs us.
The season of darkness
calls us inward
calls us home –
our mansion with many rooms.
Some we visit often.
Some we seldom enter.
Some we’ve yet to discover.
We enter the darkness
as we enter life –
not knowing the future.
Ego peers ahead
predicting, planning
feigning control
seeking escape from unknowing.
We enter the darkness
as we enter life –
not knowing the future.
Wisdom softens, listens
musters integrity
and heart
for just the next step.
The season of darkness
calls us home –
gently, tenderly.
Its cozy vastness
cocoons us.
Its silent emptiness
incubates fullness.
The season of darkness
calls us home
calls us to presence
calls us to now
whispers “everything’s here,
everything’s fine.”
The darkness births light.
Trust the darkness.
Trust your home.
Let it hold you
and behold you.
Let it birth you
and free you.
Befriend the darkness.
