Excerpt from: The Light Keepers Series.
A journey through darkness to uncover the light within.
They stood quietly against the rough wall, “Remember," Arlia whispered, "it is always sunrise somewhere. There is never a moment without sunrise, and the possibility of a new way.” Arlia said gently
Eldon frowned. “But there is always sunset too. What of that? The darkness overcoming, smothering blindness and loss. Silence. Alone and lost and vulnerable. Always there is sunset too.”
“And in sunset there is hope. In darkness only hope can guide you. On rough tracks in the dark only the light will guide you. What else is there in my silent night? There is introspection, there is peace too in silence. Such peace. There is rest. There is recovery. There is focus. There is clarity. Guiding all, there is Hope." Eldon nodded slowly, Arlia carried on quietly, "Looking at the sunlit world so bright, as the trail wavers and meanders away down the valley progress is easy. Sometimes the night must come to let us call on hope and resolve to find our own answers. In light there is so much to catch your eye and distract you from the path, distraction and dismay are travelling brothers. They dwell quietly beside the trail waiting to snare unwary eyes and catch unheeding minds. Caution is your ally in bright daylight too. Always at night there is only what we choose to light up, only as far as our lantern may glow. With only what we choose to shine our light upon we are free to choose how we illuminate and see our path, we may choose the darkness and smothering blindness you speak of, or we may choose the bright light of our lantern to guide us onwards along the rough hewn trail that we follow. The nighttime world is a world of death and loss, I agree, it is travelling through tombs of those gone past. Much sadness and remorse we can feel when surrounded by so much loss, so much death. Or we can choose to follow our road of light, to step easily onwards and head along the way, shining our light forth and watching the shadow patterns and using those very shadows as our guide. The shadows light the way, they show where the trail lifts and drops, where stones are and where holes exist to snare us. Embrace the shifting shadows as travelling guides. They shift and change always as your lantern glides along the road, but seen wisely they will guide you truly and steadily towards the dawn. And there is always light, your light is always there to shine on the trail and show you the way.”
Eldon shook his head and shuffled his feet, the wall was cold and his legs we tired of standing: “And companionship? Where is that in the darkness of the night?”
“Within. All your companions and beloved friends are deep inside your heart." Arlia rested a hand on his arm in the dark. "In shared laughter remembered even after the punchline is forgotten. In shared stories and songs recalled even when the moral has faded away. The light of your heart burns with their joy-filled tunes and their light – and yours in them. As your light shines forth let it fill what needs to be filled. Allow all passing souls to drink their fill of your light. You will always have enough, even to fill those who seem greedy at first, they are only the most depraved and most needing. Your light is always present, it only needs to be chosen and shone. The light will always do your bidding and shine how, and where, you desire it to.”
"QUIET in there." shouted a voice from outside the room. The two boys sleeping fitfully on the benches started and rolled over, shivering and snorting to settle.
Eldon shrugged off his coat and lay it over one. "Sleep now, you are safe enough tonight." he whispered. Next to him in the darkness he could not see Arlia smile.
A journey through darkness to uncover the light within.
They stood quietly against the rough wall, “Remember," Arlia whispered, "it is always sunrise somewhere. There is never a moment without sunrise, and the possibility of a new way.” Arlia said gently
Eldon frowned. “But there is always sunset too. What of that? The darkness overcoming, smothering blindness and loss. Silence. Alone and lost and vulnerable. Always there is sunset too.”
“And in sunset there is hope. In darkness only hope can guide you. On rough tracks in the dark only the light will guide you. What else is there in my silent night? There is introspection, there is peace too in silence. Such peace. There is rest. There is recovery. There is focus. There is clarity. Guiding all, there is Hope." Eldon nodded slowly, Arlia carried on quietly, "Looking at the sunlit world so bright, as the trail wavers and meanders away down the valley progress is easy. Sometimes the night must come to let us call on hope and resolve to find our own answers. In light there is so much to catch your eye and distract you from the path, distraction and dismay are travelling brothers. They dwell quietly beside the trail waiting to snare unwary eyes and catch unheeding minds. Caution is your ally in bright daylight too. Always at night there is only what we choose to light up, only as far as our lantern may glow. With only what we choose to shine our light upon we are free to choose how we illuminate and see our path, we may choose the darkness and smothering blindness you speak of, or we may choose the bright light of our lantern to guide us onwards along the rough hewn trail that we follow. The nighttime world is a world of death and loss, I agree, it is travelling through tombs of those gone past. Much sadness and remorse we can feel when surrounded by so much loss, so much death. Or we can choose to follow our road of light, to step easily onwards and head along the way, shining our light forth and watching the shadow patterns and using those very shadows as our guide. The shadows light the way, they show where the trail lifts and drops, where stones are and where holes exist to snare us. Embrace the shifting shadows as travelling guides. They shift and change always as your lantern glides along the road, but seen wisely they will guide you truly and steadily towards the dawn. And there is always light, your light is always there to shine on the trail and show you the way.”
Eldon shook his head and shuffled his feet, the wall was cold and his legs we tired of standing: “And companionship? Where is that in the darkness of the night?”
“Within. All your companions and beloved friends are deep inside your heart." Arlia rested a hand on his arm in the dark. "In shared laughter remembered even after the punchline is forgotten. In shared stories and songs recalled even when the moral has faded away. The light of your heart burns with their joy-filled tunes and their light – and yours in them. As your light shines forth let it fill what needs to be filled. Allow all passing souls to drink their fill of your light. You will always have enough, even to fill those who seem greedy at first, they are only the most depraved and most needing. Your light is always present, it only needs to be chosen and shone. The light will always do your bidding and shine how, and where, you desire it to.”
"QUIET in there." shouted a voice from outside the room. The two boys sleeping fitfully on the benches started and rolled over, shivering and snorting to settle.
Eldon shrugged off his coat and lay it over one. "Sleep now, you are safe enough tonight." he whispered. Next to him in the darkness he could not see Arlia smile.