The Other Side Of Darkness

No matter how bright the day is, darkness will inevitably creep in as it turns to night.

And no matter how dark the night gets, light will always scatter the darkness as dawn breaks

We’ve all experienced good times in our lives.

Times of joy, laughter, and contentment, where worry feels far from us.

We’ve also all experienced hard times, where the light fades into darkness.

And it’s in that darkness that hope is frequently lost, faith is shaken, and we can lose ourselves.

While we can’t know when those times will come, we know that they won’t last forever.

Neither good times nor hard times do. They come and go like the seasons.

So then how do we not lose ourselves in the times of darkness?

How do we make it through the night?

The answer lies in what we can control: ourselves.

Because it isn’t about what life throws at us, it’s how we respond to it.

Darkness only has the power we give to it.

We can choose to let it break us or build us.

We decide who will emerge on the other side of the darkness.

When Atlas sought mercy from Zeus to better carry the weight of the world, he said, “I ask not for a lighter burden, but for broader shoulders.”

I love that visualization because Atlas is the one changing, not the unimaginable weight of the world.

We’ll never have control over the things that we go through in life.

But we will always control how we respond to them.

When we focus externally, we wish our circumstances were different.

We point out how unfair things are.

And this can lead to a crippling bitterness that acts like a cloud blocking the sun, no matter how bright it’s shining.

When the light has passed and the darkness surrounds you, focus your energy inwards.

Don’t wish that the darkness would subside.

Instead, seek the courage, strength, and patience to make it through the night, no matter how long it goes on.

Because on the other side of darkness, you might find a version of yourself that could never have existed without it.