I had a nightlight when I was little. Chances are you did too–maybe you still do.
It’s only natural to fear the dark; when we can’t see what’s around, we imagine the unseen dangers that could be lurking in the shadows. That mugger in a ski mask. That monster hiding under the bed.
Today I saw an interesting segment on Morning Joe about theologian Barbara Brown Taylor’s new book, Learning to Walk in the Dark. Taylor argues that the darkness is not evil, not something to be feared, but in many ways, where we find ourselves closest to reaching understanding and spiritual fulfillment. (You can read the first chapter here.)
This is something we’ve known all along at Mysterious Ways. The stories we’ve uncovered give reason to be thankful for the darkness. Here are five to consider…
The Dark Brings Us Closer
Driving home from the beach late one evening, Roxine Shields of Silver Spring, Maryland, was anxious. No other cars were around. Trees lining both sides of the road blocked out the moonlight, and not even a streetlamp could be seen. We should have left earlier, she thought.
Up ahead, however, her car’s headlights illuminated a figure at the side of the road. A figure she and her husband were destined to help.
Would they have noticed the woman in daylight? Would they have been as concerned for her welfare? In the dark, people come together in the most incredible ways.
The Dark Helps Us Hear
It’s been proven that when we shut off one of our senses, we’re more in tune with the others. The darkness allows our ears to pick up sounds they never would otherwise.
Take Julia Eie’s story. She was renting a small apartment in Oregon that overlooked an apple orchard. When she heard cries for help, she assumed it was coming from somewhere among the trees. She called the police, and when they failed to find the source, she drove out on her own to investigate. As it turned out, the pleas came from much–much–farther away.
The Dark Makes Us Think
When we turn off our TVs, phones and laptops, the distractions of the world fade away, and it’s just us and our brains. That quiet allows us to make great leaps in understanding. Psychotherapist and former monk Thomas Moore loves taking his dog for a walk late at night, when the din of the world has died down: “I look up and see Orion brilliant against the dark blue-black of the sky. My mind can’t hold the vast openness and complexity, and yet, here I am, waiting for my dog to do his business in snow that mirrors the Milky Way. In moments like this, my daily ritual transcends the mundane. I’m pulled out of myself into wonder at the stars. I am ready to hear and entertain even the most fanciful possibilities.”
The Dark Brings Out Our Best
In World War II, Nazi soldiers set a deadly trap in the French town of Voellerdingen for an oncoming battalion of American tanks. Yet the trap failed and the Allies were able to win a major battle. Why didn’t the dynamite go off and blast the Americans to smithereens? After many years, the true story was finally revealed, about a farming family’s brave act–and the Nazis’ deep slumber–the night before the battle.
The Dark Is Where We Find Faith
Jeff Kling of La Porte, Indiana, heard a strange voice in the darkness of his hospital room after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous tumor. “You’re always so busy. I can never get your attention,” the voice said to him. It went on to assure Jeff that he’d been completely healed. Only later, when the baffled doctor confirms the fact, did Jeff realize who the mysterious voice belonged to.
How about you? What moments in the dark have brought you to a better place? Share your stories with us.
