When Light Meets Darkness
I painted this piece with the intention of letting emotion guide me more than form. What emerged surprised me: a ghostly figure bathed in white, surrounded by shadows and streaks of red. It feels like an apparition caught between worlds, suspended in a space where light and darkness press against each other.
As I sat with it, I realized this image mirrors something deeply human: the fact that we all carry both light and darkness inside us.
The Illusion of Pure Light
We’re often told to “stay positive” or “focus on the bright side,” as if darkness has no place in our lives. But pretending it doesn’t exist only makes it grow in silence. The truth is, light alone can feel blinding, and darkness alone can feel unbearable. Healing isn’t about choosing one over the other, it’s about learning to live with both.
This is big in some witchy and New Age circles, the "love and light" and "Positive vibes only" crowd. They will say any negative feelings or emotions are "low vibrational" or that you are manifesting your own suffering. None of this is true. We have feelings of sadness and anger and fear for a reason, and when the dark moments arise, its important we face it and allow ourselves to feel these things and work through them.
Darkness as Teacher
The darker moments in my life have often been the ones that forced me to grow the most. They’ve taught me humility, empathy, and honesty. I think of several years ago when I had a major mental health crisis brought on by some of my out of control behavior. It was hard, it was humiliating and it was ugly. I'm not saying I handled it all perfectly either. I did run and hide for a time just to take some time with my own self to try and figure out how to move forward. I got into therapy and started on shadow work and meditation which started me down my magickal path. It was horrible and scary, but I came out a better person than I was going in.
Darkness is uncomfortable, but it’s also a teacher. It strips away illusions and shows us the raw truth of who we are and what we need. Without shadow, light loses its meaning.
The Dance Between the Two
In this painting, the white seems to burn brighter because of the black and red around it. That’s true of our lives, too. Light and darkness don’t cancel each other out, they define one another. The shadow makes the glow possible. The glow softens the shadow. Together, they create depth.
Closing Reflection
We are not just our brightest moments, nor only our darkest ones. We are the meeting place between the two. This has been the hardest part for me, and I'm finally getting to self forgiveness. We are not our worst moments. We can heal, grow and become a brighter, better person. Like brushstrokes layered across a canvas, our lives are made up of both suffering and joy, wounds and healing, despair and hope.
The beauty isn’t in erasing the darkness, but in embracing the whole picture.