Really? Light in the Darkness? Hope in Grief? Beauty in Brokeness?
..... Maybe. Maybe. Maybe that's how Love shows up?
Now comes the longest night,
the shortest light.
Now comes the deepest darkness.
and maybe it’s too dark.
Now comes the thin thin ray of hope.
and maybe it’s a shining morning, just beyond the far horizon.
It’s happy holidays and merry Christmas, and Boxing Day
and Kwanza and Hannukah and Bodhi,
and all those others that I don’t know.
Oh, and also: wars and climate and elections and oil spills and
viruses and guns and unaffordable prescriptions.
Oh, and also: puppies, and candles,
and a text from the friend you were just thinking of, and old movies,
and the way an Amaryllis grows three inches overnight.
The yesterdays, the tomorrows.
All of it.
There’s so much, so much of so much.
All of it.
And, maybe, maybe maybe
this is a hard season for you?
Maybe you’ve lost a love, a hope, the dream of a dream?
Maybe the light is dim?
And it seems like the whole world
is singing and celebrating as you ache alone in the dark?
It’s hard.
It’s hard, I know.
Maybe words are inadequate?
Maybe I say too little, or too much?
Maybe silence says it all?
Maybe music softens the fall?
And this piercing pain, maybe it’s lovely too,
in that quiet way of loveliness?
In the “bleak mid-winter” stillness and waiting,
as you stand resolute and ready?
Maybe you’ve seen a new glimmer of light?
New day, new possibilities? New dreams, even?
And maybe it seems too good to be true?
Maybe it’s only the “magic” of the season,
Maybe too terrifying to hope, too soon?
Now comes the longest night, the shortest light.
Now comes the deepest darkness.
And maybe it’s too dark.
Now comes the thin thin ray of hope.
And maybe there's a shining morning, just beyond the far horizon.
And for some it’s full and festive with family and friends and hope
and for some it’s lonely and lost
for some, the darkest of all. I know.
For some it’s shopping and singing
For some it’s watching and waiting
For some it’s bright and busy
For some it’s dark and alone
For some it’s all unknown.
But – here’s my guess, and it’s only speculation –
(it’s my experience, i wonder if you know it too?)
This is a season that amplifies all of it.
All of it, all of it, all of it.
Maybe we seek the light more sincerely
maybe we hold to hope more dearly
Maybe we miss the missing with burning tears
maybe we treasure the living
and cherish the years
Maybe the longing is longer
the grieving is deeper
the loving is sweeter
the moments are richer
Now comes the longest night, the shortest light.
Now comes the deepest darkness.
And maybe it’s too dark.
Now comes that thin thin ray of hope.
And maybe there's a shining morning,
just beyond that far horizon?
Maybe maybe maybe
the longest night will fade
the light will dawn and lengthen
the hope will rise and sweeten
Maybe maybe maybe
it’s about falling to our knees
surrendering
to everything everything everything:
the broken and the beautiful
the mundane and the mystical
the simple, the spectacular
the sacred
Maybe maybe maybe
it’s about companioning:
seeing one another
through eyes of grace
Walking together
into holier space
Struggling together
through all of it, all of it, all of it
Maybe maybe maybe
That's how Love shows up.
Maybe maybe maybe
we can be the ones
who reflect the Light?
Maybe maybe maybe
we can be the ones who amplify the Love?
“Now comes the longest night, the shortest light.
Now comes the deepest darkness.
And maybe it’s too dark.
Now comes the thin thin ray of hope.
And maybe there's a shining morning, just beyond the far horizon.”
What a gift from the talented Rebecca Bruff! Words of comfort and joy and mostly, the message that we are not alone in this world.
I really look forward to your posts — I find them to be meaningful and I circle round and think about them again and again.
This has been a year of thoughtful and purposeful reading: a slow read of War and Peace which also addresses many imponderables.
I am happy to have added this Substack to enrich my interior dialog.
Thank you.