You just never know what is in the darkness.............

Last night as we were getting ready for bed, our electricity went out. It was quite a shock to be saying good night on my laptop to someone and my screen was the only illumination in the whole house. We all collectively sucked in the air at the same instant. It was strange.

Of course our first reaction was to know the why of our outage. We checked around us in the neighborhood to see if we were the only house affected. Nope, the neighborhood was quite dark. We called the power company, they had had no reports of the outage and suggested we check our breaker. Uhhhhhh, okay but the neighbors are dark too reported my daughter to the operator who was very curt and said the company would see to it. Okee Dokee. Errrrrr. Some people's children.

Then our next act was to find alternate illumination. I knew my pyromania would come in handy but SM fears leaving candles lit so I was so very happy to hand him a battery candle that we have on a timer on the hallway table. For months now it has given a soft glow to be able to navigate the hallway from 6 to 10 pm.  He is so funny. He said he thought all this time that it was a real one and was glad to know that I had forethought about such things...... Yeah, good save Joe.

The point of all this is that all the little electronic lights, clock faces, things we take for granted were dark. It was just beautiful. Total darkness.

For me: peace, tranquility. For SM: practicality....time for sleep. For Shelley: checking on her herd and nurturing them. For Ry: he was already asleep when it happened. For Gerea: "Oma did you forget to pay the light company?" "Yes, you silly", I responded but I knew where it came from. Funny on the outside but a bit of the terror of 3 years in SC when she couldn't be sure her world would be warm, nourishing or well lit because of her fathers neglect. 3 years away and yet it is her first inclination to revert to fear, blame.

In the darkness, just like the old saying goes, "you never know what lurks".

Our darkest times are the ones that are the formation of who we are...but they don't have to be who we will become. Just like the celebration of Yule, the coming back of the sun tomorrow at Solstice, we can celebrate the self control and will that lives inside each of us as a light and promise of change.

The remark has stayed with me this morning and I wish I could take that insecurity away so that GK wouldn't have to have that as her first response to a power outage but......then I would be taking away an essential part of who she is and what she needs to face her future and be who she will become. She is outwardly strong....yay. She is inwardly tender....yay. And she is just who she needs to be....yay.

So at this time of a change in the cosmos....when light defeats darkness again, I am grateful for another lesson handed to my family by way of the "power company" but coming from the universe. For me: humility and an answer. For SM: huh? For Shelley: an awakening to a reality. For Ry: a good night's sleep. And for GK: an assurance that Casa de Cuckoo is safe, warm and the lights are back on. No harm no foul.

Blessings of the Season, Oma Linda