Welcome Darkness

Yesterday was a discussion of why we should stop escaping and choose to endure. Today is about the magic that happens when we welcome the darkness. Choosing to stand tall with locked-in determination in the face of chaos creates the strongest people. Pressure makes diamonds for a reason. Enduring the difficulty of life forces us to evolve.

The journey of life is not easy, it has its ups and downs. If we welcome the downs, the ups become that much sweeter. Everyone has difficulties in their lives, by choosing to endure and welcome the suffering, we can outlast our competitors who choose easier options. This perspective meshes well with physical pursuits but can be applied to all walks of life. If we are competing to be the best, we must work to be the best. There are early morning workouts, two-a-days, grueling weeks of preparation, all in the effort to emerge better than we were before. Michael Phelps would train for 5-6 hours in the pool a day year-round. He assuringly welcomed darkness into his life many times. In the darkness, he was still able to see the light at the end of the tunnel as he stared at the line in the pool and flip-turned infinitely. He finally emerged from that tunnel and is now the greatest Olympian of all time.

By welcoming darkness we push our minds to grow tougher. What hurt us yesterday won’t hurt us today. What made us falter last week is an afterthought next week. What gave us doubt last month is the reason for our success this month. As we turn off the lights and become one with the shadows of life, nothing can defeat us. Turning the lights back on is the easy way out. By living in the shadows we begin to crave the fickle feeling of suffering. With each success comes more of a desire to see what else is possible. When one goal is achieved we immediately run back to the drawing board to see what else there is. The darkness gives us purpose, it helps us cherish the light. With no darkness, we simply exist. With only light, we would live peaceful, mundane lives. The darkness is where we grow. The darkness is how we find our true selves.

Every day has light and darkness, the Sun and the Moon. Embracing the darkness is a choice. Flip off the lights and see what comes your way.

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