Week One: Darkness

Sunday the temperature was in the 60s (15-18 C) and the sun shone most of the day. I spent about an hour outside in the late afternoon and couldn't belive it was still light at 5 pm when I headed off to get groceries. But yes, the nights are getting longer as we get closer to the longest night of the year.

Darkness, I think, is a tricky concept. Many of us were afraid of the dark as children, and darkness and night are often used as symbols of the unknown and of fear and evil. And when it's dark, it's hard to see anything - where it's safe to walk, who is in the room with us, what is making noise in the distance . . .

And yet, night is also when the moon and stars are visible. Plants need light to grow, but they also need roots in the darkness of the earth to hold them in place and nourish them. And food would be less tasty if it weren't for onions and garlic, which we harvest from the dark underground.

So I'm paying attention to darkness this week, both its fearful and its wonderful qualities.