On the opposite end of the spectrum from the darkness that curls inside and around us exists the light; lightness embodying levity and weightlessness while darkness embodies pressure. Light is the reason we are able to see our world at dawn, it is the home of hues, and within the spiritual inner world it is the realm of endless creation. The light paints the world, and my eyes feast on this nourishment. The unfurling of rainbows down the row of zinnias is almost too much for my heart to take.
The green peppers swell and begin to morph into yellows, oranges, and reds with saturations beyond reason. The way the light cascades and mixes with the farm body can alert me instantly to the temperature I will experience when I make my way outside. Whenever I have a chance to leave the farm, I am overcome by the unique way light is experienced in new places.
It is at the crossroads of light and darkness that we are able to perceive boundaries. The collision of these two necessitous polarities within this mirrored world and deep within our own being begets a host of shifting forms that build the present moment. Darkness and lightness of being exists in the wrestling between the desire to do good and the impulse to please the self.
Choosing to embody love and reach for lightness continues to refine humanity. Similarly, in the garden we see this mixing of the shadowy soil depths with the luminous atmospheric realm as the very action packed interplay that is the foundation for most all life on Earth.
It should be noted that we as human beings have been coerced into qualifying dark and light colors to be connected to the polarities of darkness and light (goodness and evil). This is simply a control mechanism installed into our society to exert and maintain power over all. All the depths and richness of color illuminated by the light on the chromatic spectrum are tied to its energetic brightness.
All humans from all races on the planet were born from the mixing and mingling of the same cosmic forces and offer up uniquely beautiful inclinations towards those forces due to their areas of origin across the diversified Earth. This evolution of humanity has given the world all of the cultures and art forms that make our planet sing.
It is our responsibility today to illuminate the true darkness that props up white privilege in order to bring holistic balance to our very lopsided and unjust social world. Colorism is an insidious, destructive and human invented and protected force that only serves to limit us and keep us all from our greater powers of creation and regeneration through cross-cultural collaboration and the reverence we may have for each other. Nature has shown us time and again that biodiversity is strength.
It is this diversity that gives us the vantage point where we can really appreciate the light. Sitting in the field, I watch the neotropical songbirds jump through the branches of the sumac, up to the power lines that stretch to the barn, and out into the garden to hunt for snacks. The array of differing colors is bewildering. Yellows, reds, and purples dance along the flowering landscape. I know that the presence of each species is a signpost for the wellness of the valley.
Crossing the bridge at the creek, I encounter a small, swirling cloud of bright blue Appalachian Azure butterflies twisting silently in place. I have been floored by their iridescence throughout the years. Their lightness can send them through my sphere of perception without notice and at other times they are all I can focus on. This is especially true when they have been drawn in by the minerals of a fresh slaughter. Their fluttering blue flashes contrast the deep, pulsing red of fresh blood.
The light I carry within myself is oftentimes harder to appreciate than the obvious beauty of the natural world surrounding me. It is easy for me to other myself from nature. Additionally, in today’s online world, we have been coaxed to get lost in comparison, and our constant desire for content on social media has us trying to manufacture a light to be sold on the minds of others.
It feels so much easier to bring to the surface my critiques and issues than my gifts and talents, and yet the online shell I build around myself tends to point towards the opposite conclusion. The dual construction of the modern day through the contrived realness of social media and the deep rooted desire for authenticity keeps us consuming and ever starving.
As I continue to get older, I am developing more inner peace for who I am and the journey I have walked, online and inside. This feels like the first steps towards the self acceptance that connects to truth and is separate from the desperate arrogance born of my insecurities and ego. I spend every evening in bed imagining a white light spreading out and covering my entire body, my dogs, husband, and farm. In the morning, I notice how the light dances on the wall as the sun sparkles on the tiny waves in my cup of coffee.
My awareness of light seems to be connected to my capacity for joy; as one grows so too does the other. When I am weary and sick, in my body or in my heart, this state can elude me and be more difficult to obtain, but the striving to do so appears to build within me a strength to last all seasons. When I am downtrodden and lost in the depths of my own darkness, I am most easily lifted by the light shining from others.
Through my relationships I am able to hold an inner quality that is sure to outlive my own experience. With this support, I am able to try my best to match the light that shines within the realm I walk to the light that holds vigil in my soul. As the two meet in frequency, now and then, I am reborn over and over again in the image of creation.