To Know the Dark

“To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.

To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,

and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,

and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.

–Wendell Berry

Poetry can be a safe guide, a wise presence, so you don’t feel alone while moving through the inevitable dark places in life . . . . Like a trowel that digs the dark, compacted, wintered earth to prepare it for spring planting, hearing or writing a poem works upon your life so something new can grow” (Poetic Medicine: the Healing Art of Poem-Making by John Fox, pp. 29-30).

This dark realm is like the womb before birth when life can only be felt. Feeling your way through the dark places inside can be frightening and liberating. Relying on the book All the Answers to Life’s Questions won’t get you through the night. The light of reason fades into nothingness in the blackest night. But wait! The dark “blooms,” the dark “sings.” Not only does this not sound scary, it’s downright inviting.

Go willingly into the singing night. Let the dark blossoms embrace you and comfort you as you explore the dark recesses of your being. Leave your sight behind. Sense the night. Feel the night. Intuit the dark light. Here is a short poem I wrote inspired by Berry’s poem:

enter the night

where black flowers

burst into song

Photo Credit: Photo by Peter Shanks at Flickr Creative Commons.

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