My Life is My Responsibility: Insights for Conscious Living

I suspect we have always been afraid of the dark, in its many forms, and at times that was probably for good reasons, but today it seems we are not all that willing to embrace the dark in any form.

We illuminate our homes with artificial light, as soon as the sun sets, so we will not be in the dark, in effect extending the day well into the night. On one hand that’s a good thing. I’m not suggesting you turn your back on progress and switch off the lights. On the other hand, it makes it so easy to fill your life with busyness.

Darkness gives you an opportunity to stop and do that inner work that does not require an external light.

Often, we can’t tear ourselves away from our devices, in case we miss out on a snippet of information and find ourselves in the dark about some vital or trivial issue. One wonders how we ever survived in those pre-internet days of information darkness, waiting for the nightly news update or the morning paper to feed our need to know about what was going on in the world.

How did people ever survive when you had to wait days, weeks or even months for news from your friends and relatives in the next town, let alone news from distant places on the other side of the globe?

Sadly, most of it is only noise, distracting you from living your life in the present moment with the people right there with you.

Sometimes darkness comes in the form of anguish, presenting you with questions you’d rather not deal with, so you suppress it with medication or some other addiction, instead of sitting with it and discovering the lesson it’s brought to you.

Darkness allows you to step out of the glare of the light and see the things waiting for you in the shadows.

Silence, the form darkness takes in the world of sound, allows you to hear the voice of intuition, which is drowned out by the sea of noise surrounding you every day.

Ponder point

When was the last time you sat in the dark, unplugged from all your devices, and stayed with an issue until you knew what to do next?

Have you even considered that approach?

Actions to consider

Set aside a time to sit quietly, with your eyes closed, and listen to what’s going on inside you.

Make sitting quietly a regular, daily practice.

Spend a day unplugged from your devices.

Record your observations and thoughts in your journal.