LET THERE BE LIGHT

"Let there be light" ... so reads Genesis 1:3 in King James Bible. Light is a good thing. Sky and earth, air and water, birds and fish, animals and vegetation are good things, too. But, how does one grab a fistful of light and hold on to it?

I need light because I don't do well in prolonged darkness. A lot of human beings need light to function at their best - or at all in some instances. Darkness may be important for its contrast: day and night, good and evil, knowledge and ignorance but, how can one keep light from fading to black - as they say in the film industry?

Tomorrow the summer Solstice begins as the longest day of 2011 - in actual daylight minutes. It would be delightful to catch some light and a few extra moments in a Mason jar - to be opened and enjoyed next February or March. What a boon of a trick that could be. One reads that 'life is light' in every genre. The topic is discussed and debated by priests and scientists, geniuses and bourgeoisie, thinkers and dunces. The question remains; how can one capture and preserve light and time?

According to Albert Einstein, light is part of his E=mc2 theory or in terms of quantum theory. The Eastern religion, Diwali, celebrates with a festival of lights as the victory of light over darkness; their Eastern mantra urges God "from darkness, lead us into light." It is not so much that people are afraid of temporary darkness but that their wellbeing requires light. It has been scientifically proven that darkness and light effect mood, life, health, success and relationships. Light stimulates happiness and energy; it is more uplifting than pep pills.

The joy of light is seeing a rainbow, the aurora borealis, sparkling waters or a butterfly on a hibiscus bloom. These delights are contrasts in the spectrum of light - images illuminated and captured so easily with modern technology: solar lights, computers, television.... Now I get it!

Well, I thank you for caring enough about light to stick with me. Because you were here during my dilemma, I found answers to my questions. It is an easy solution and - I am embarrassed - because it was in front of me all the while. My digital camera captures light and color, life and nature. I clicked twenty images of birds and blooms, life and joy, nature and beauty as the sun came up this beautiful June morning. I'm going to enjoy those images again on cold, dark days in the early months of 2012 - like opening a Mason jar and releasing Sunbeams.

If you need some light in your life, try a digital camera; see if the images you collect add light to your dark days. As a Hindu prayer of worship says, "...from the darkness, lead us unto light...." That's where it led me.... Tell me how that works for you. I'd like to know.