-A Photographic Storytelling Blog-
When the darkness takes you
With her hand across your face
Don’t give in too quickly
Find the thing she’s erased
Find the line, find the shape
Through the grain
Find the outline, things will
Tell you their name – Suzanne Vega, Night Vision
What do you think of when you encounter the dark? Is it fear of the unknown? A sense of isolation and loneliness? An apprehensive feeling? Many cultural metaphors exist to describe what humans experience emotionally when encountering the darkness. In many religions, dark versus light symbolizes the struggle between good versus evil. In characterizing criminal behavior, the darkness is a place where devilish deeds go undetected. In psychology, your dark side, or shadow, is the hidden part of your personality associated with less desirable traits. Also, a depressed or brooding mood is associated with darkness.
In education, lack of knowledge is characterized as “being in the dark.” Darkness also takes place during the time in which we are typically asleep and dreaming, oblivious to our surroundings.
If you’ve ever found yourself in a state of insomnia, you may have had the opportunity to experience a different aspect of the dark: the opportunity for productivity, peacefulness, and reflection. I’m currently in one of those wakeful states and writing this blog at three in the morning. As I am enveloped in the quiet stillness of this dark room, save for a bright computer screen, I am reflecting on the day’s events and on the unfolding future.
Often I light some incense, and the soft purring cat on the lap is not far behind.
Outside I can hear the falling rain. It’s an ideal time for a good book, a brainstorming session, or perhaps even quietly playing some music.
I used to be afraid of the dark. There were evenings when on my drive home, the interplay of all the light and shadow gave me a strong sense of foreboding. Since all the bushes and trees surrounding the sidewalk where I lived were cloaked in darkness, I would run quickly to my apartment, shut the door and turn on the lights. If I tried to sleep, simple shadows on the wall would instill a sense of dread. Consequently, the bedroom door was always open a crack.
Now, over ten years later, I am still cautious but I don’t dread the night. And when I find myself in a dark room, I find an occasion to imagine, to create…and to simply be.
Slice of Life 