Balancing the Light with the Dark
It’s not all Love and Light
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Hello Spring! These past few days I have felt the shift in seasons.
We had the Spring Equinox on Wednesday, and I woke up feeling the lightness! There was something in the air - something energetically shifted as we entered a new chapter. This is about new beginnings and fresh starts, and I’m feeling reflective during this transition.
A big part of my learnings has been around cyclical living - this relates to the seasons, the moon phases, our menstrual cycles, and something I’ve recently been diving into - the light and dark.
For there to be Summer, there must be Winter. For there to be a new moon, there must be a full moon.
And so I pose the question - to feel happiness must we feel sadness?
For us to feel light, must we feel the darkness too?
To truly embrace and appreciate peace, must we lean into our shadows all the more?
You may have heard the term, ‘the dark night of the soul’. If you have, hats off to you for already diving into this space, it’s not easy. If you haven’t, don’t worry I will explain, and I imagine you’ve already just opened a new tab and googled those words!
I think of the dark night of the soul as a necessary ‘death’ period or cleansing, where parts of ourselves that are not serving us must die in order to birth in the new.
In that regard, it’s a hugely beneficial and vital phase of our individual growth and transformation. But oh my wow try telling yourself that while you’re in the thick of it! It’s tough. It’s heavy. It’s uncomfortable. Leaning into our shadow sides, facing the parts of ourselves we may not be proud of, and cleansing ourselves of it is no easy feat.
But what if it’s only part of a natural cycle, like many other aspects of the natural world? In order for there to be a positive shift or something hugely exciting to enter your life, something needs to be worked through first. I’ve experienced so many times in the past a ‘negative’ phase before a ‘positive’ phase reveals itself, and maybe that’s the balance of dark and light, yin and yang. Often at times things need to get worse before they get better, and so to find calmer waters we must endure the storm.
I experienced a ‘dark night of the soul’ a few months ago. At the time I thought I was experiencing a depression - which in many ways it was - but I now understand it all so much more clearly and feel grateful for that period.
I needed parts of myself to ‘die’ and be cleansed in order to rise and blossom. Think of a butterfly finally spreading it’s colourful wings having spent days in a dark cocoon (where it had no idea it would soon become one of the most majestic creatures on this planet), or a diamond being formed under pressure. I very much believe that sometimes we must experience the dark to truly experience the light.
So, if you feel a lot is bubbling up to the surface at the moment, and you’re in the thick of a challenging time (or have been in the past), I’d like to plant the seed that maybe… just maybe… it serves a purpose and something great is on it’s way.
Maybe that’s just the cyclical nature of living - the good paired with the bad. Know it’s ok. We all go through it - even the most ‘put together’ people. It could be a sign you’re making huge changes and transforming into a beautiful butterfly about to spread your wings - you just can’t see it yet because you’re still in the cocoon.
Unfortunately, self development, transformational growth, and spirituality are not all ‘love and light’. To consciously choose to lean in to the challenging times in order to understand it, break patterns, and grow from it is tough. Sometimes the most peaceful people have been through the hardest times.
I feel it comes down to recognising and accepting that we all have light and dark within us. The reason the term ‘love and light’ doesn’t fully encompass the spiritual journey is because it fails to recognise that every single person has darkness, a shadow side within. It’s human nature. It’s nature. It’s life. And it’s nothing to feel ashamed of.
So as we begin this new chapter of Spring, I encourage you to see and accept yourself fully. Remember, a diamond is made under pressure. So if you’re going through a lot right now, know you are not alone. It’s ok to feel a lot. You never know what life has in store for you tomorrow.
Affirmation
“I love and accept all parts of myself”.
“I trust the dark times I endure will lead me to the light”.
“Life is a perfect harmony of the light and dark”.
Product
Flowers - buy yourself flowers! Celebrate the new beginning of Spring.
Crystal
Black Obsidian - this is a crystal to lean into your shadow side. Use it to help reveal all parts of yourself, and show your shadows.
Clear Quartz - clear quartz is known to help balance and harmonise energy, so it’s a wonderful stone to work with while speaking into light and dark energies.
Sending love,
Wonderful reflections! Really needed to journal on this and still so much to do but I find it so interesting and helpful! You’ve posted and reflected on this before in YouTube vídeos and on Instagram so it was already on my mind quite a bit. And funny how that works, the same evening you posted this substack I was watching The New Look with my mum, and there is this wonderful monologue by Christian Dior’s brother who says needed. “We are all two parts. The upper and the under. The light and the dark. In each of us, they float like layers, separated by a bar.” It goes on even longer about how each one of has the light and the dark inside, and the dark needs to be firmly rooted in order for the light to float. Turns out this is the inspiration for the original Bar look with a cream jacket and black skirt. Also, reflecting onthis really makes my think about my grandma. She would always tell me if I was dissapointed about something that hadn’t gone as I had planned or wanted: “Seems like this was not meant for you. Even if you don’t know it now, it will be for a reason and in the end it will turn out as it is meant to. Even if you can’t see it now or you don’t know why yet, but it will be for the better.” She also always used to say “It will never be so dark that it won’t become light again”. Light will always follow the darkness. This too shall pass. Just some thoughts I had reading this. Thanks so much for sharing!