Since attending a couple of retreats he led over twenty years ago, I have been a fan of Parker Palmer. He recently published a post from one of his books that summons us to shine our inner light on the shade of each day. 

A lot of us find ourselves on the dark side of the moon these days. We are laid low by nonstop “breaking news” that ranges from bad to worse, then even worse… 

When will we ever learn? Do we have time to learn? Those are questions for which I have no self-assured answer. But here are three things I know with a certainty:

(1) Turning our backs on all of this deepens the depression that will hasten our demise.

(2) Talking with people we trust about this darkness allows us to grieve together in ways that will, in the long run, keep us engaged with life.

(3) How we live our lives still matters. If each of us lived with even deeper reverence and respect for the natural and human worlds—and joined hands with others as we do—we would increase the flow of humility, healing, and new life.

Memo to Self: As you muddle thru your own version of this darkness, remember that there is an inner Light that you and you alone control. Every day look for some way to show up in your personal, vocational, and/or public life with whatever Light you have.  We are at the end of an era of destructive delusions. Let us be midwives of the best possible new reality by holding this time of transition in the Light… 

When we feel certain that the human soul is no longer at work in the world, it’s time to make sure that ours is visible to someone somewhere.