Dark

I've been spending this moon cycle really trying to connect with the dark. December and the winter months are a great time for doing this. Our society has made darkness a symbol of evil, negativity, and fear. It's unfortunate since there is so much mystery, magic, and potential in the darkness.

To allow myself to rise above the fear I have in the dark, I've been trying to take walks, and walk around my house with the lights off. I think some of the fear is just a natural, animal instinct, but when you go past that you realize that it's just dark, there's nothing different there than when it is light. It's fascinating to feel your eyes adjust to the darkness. Humans don't have very good eyesight in the dark, but I'm starting to believe that it can be learned to some extent.

The dark months allow for introspection, quiet, hibernating, and a halt to the energy that is higher in the warm months. To allow yourself to sink into that and embrace it is a cathartic experience. I am discovering things in the dark, about myself. I am discovering nature in a different way, in the dark.

If you walk in the woods at night, the energy and visual experience is so different. I especially have loved it on these nights when it's snowy. The dark trees contrasting with the bright snow...night-time has a certain "light" of it's own. And the silence. Darkness is like a blanket thrown over the world, allowing the magical creatures to emerge and play. Under this shroud of black, because you can feel more then see, the energy is different. I can feel the magic of the place, the trees whispering to each other, the crack of sticks as some creature walks. My senses heighten because I am virtually without sight. The silence can be deafening.

I almost don't want to leave this season. I find comfort in the dark and know that in itself, darkness is not something to be feared. And, in some ways, I feel safer there, under cover, able to move freely and very possibly never be seen.