As I’m writing this, Russia just declared war on Ukraine. It’s a very hard thing to grapple with, as I’m sure many of you have been feeling these past few days as well. Just as some light started to trickle in through the dark curtains, just as the world began to lift covid restrictions and we sniffed something resembling normalcy, this happens.
In times like these, it’s easy to give up hope. Easy to let that flame of light die out. However, now is when we have to light it brighter than ever!
Sometimes it might feel like it’s not socially OK to be OK, almost like it’s morally wrong to be too happy.
You catch yourself feeling good about the world and instantly remember there’s a pandemic, wars, and climate change, and that so many people and animals are suffering. How can we choose to be light when this is what we know? How do we find hope in a world that is so… hopeless?
But at the end of the day, the only thing we have is that light and we must choose to activate it. For by lighting your own light, you allow for others to also light theirs, with a ripple effect you can’t even imagine.
One of my favorite quotes is by James Keller:
“A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.”
You carry this light inside you and you can choose to turn the switch at any time. Sometimes that’s hard and in some particularly gloomy places, finding the switch takes a lot of fumbling in the dark. But find it. Keep looking and make it your mission to make sure that no matter what, there will be light again, and you won’t stop until you find it.
This Week’s Challenge
On days when awareness overwhelm creeps in and I’m unsure of what to do, unclear if I should give in and just accept that the world is falling apart or keep fighting, I remind myself of the light. I tell myself that at the end of the day, this light inside me is all I have, and I kindly plug that no one else is going to light it for me — nor could they!
Next, I remind myself that if I choose to be light, I allow others to activate their light as well. That light will always — always — lead to more light.
I have the power to choose light and by activating that power, I become a candle in a dark room. With my own candle burning, I can help others light theirs too, and soon there will be a bunch of light where there used to be nothing but darkness.
Challenge: Activate Your Light
This challenge you can only master by continuously practicing it, over and over and over again. You can say an affirmation in the morning (see example below), write it down and keep it as a note in your wallet, or use it as an exercise to turn the page on dark days.
The more you practice, the better you’ll get at being a light warrior, so I would recommend you do them all!
What this exercise will do for you is provide a mindset shift. A deep and profound understanding that you carry a powerful force within you and by activating it, you can make big and beautiful marks on this world.
When I feel extra sad and confused, I practice channeling my light even harder. I choose to believe that the stronger my light is, the more I can share that light with the people who need it the most. I send out a message to the Universe that this is how I want to see the world. Strong, resilient, and filled with light.
Affirmation
I send you love and prayer for your light journey. Come back and practice it often! You are a powerful force to be reckoned with and the day you start using that force for good, the world can shift with you.