Light to be, light to not

Light. It’s an element from nature, which makes us dream and anticipate at the same time. Every society in the world wrote about it, has been mystified by it at times. Divine or a warning? A hope in the dead of winter for some, it is also a cosmic force for many others.

Mostly though, it is also a symbol. A fire can mean life. It can also denote a huge problem. Riots. Revolution. Vigils. A fight for them is sometimes a fight for us. A fire lit by us is also to warn others that either we are not finished here. Not until you give us what we want. An independent state? The end of a genocide, perhaps? Could it be a sign that change has been demanded? A reform maybe or a change of governments?

I leave these questions because there is no one answer. What else can light bring? Destruction. Grief. Joy if we look in the right corners of our lives. Our communities. What light? Sunrise isn’t sunset. Most times, we think of the natural beauty they bring. Sometimes we are reminded of the symbolism. Sunrise pushes back the night. What did the night bring? A smolten fire someone whispers somewhere in the world. In that case, what now? Sunsets hardly ever answer that question.