To Know the Dark
by Wendell BerryTo go in the dark with a light is to know the light.
To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,
and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,
and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.
I’ve only seen it once, and only by accident. It was a hot summer evening in June. The heat made heavier by the oppressive humidity. The sun had set, but the heat now seemed to radiate back from the earth into the air. The darkness of the night had opened up and swallowed the moon herself. The faint twinkling of the stars began to appear as the dusk receded.
As the three of us walked from the condo to the beach, I realized that I had lived by the Gulf of Mexico in Southwest Florida for more than 3 years and had not been to the beach at night. I could tell you that I didn’t live near enough to the beach. I might even tell you that the darkness is scary and the sharks come out. The truth, however, is just that I never thought of it. The parking lots closed, and so I went home. Now that I was at a workshop in a condo on the beach staying with friends, we could walk. They wanted to see the beach at night.
The gentle breeze that night by the ocean is steady, but not cooling. The endless rhythm of the crashing waves should be relaxing, but is somehow menacing. The waves drown out our voices. The twinkling stars bounce their light off the peaks of waves. With the strength of numbers, the three of us bravely go into the salty water. The sand is soft, but we cannot see into the darkness of the water. The warmth of the water, the perfect bath tub temperature, gives us a strange sense of safety.
That’s when I see it. Trailing behind them. What is that? I move my own hand, and this thing appears right next to me. Breaking through the darkness, something unexpected — a stream of light. Phosphorescence! Bright blue-white trails of light follow any agitation of the water. As if by magic, we create streams of light with our bodies. In that moment, we know that wishes are granted, dreams come true, the world is beautiful. Magic pixie dust is everywhere. We play in that moonless night, the ocean our bathtub, and the darkness our light.
“… the dark, too, blooms and sings,
and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.”
~ Wendell Berry
