Rekindle The Light Within: #MondayMusings #Blogiversary #GuestPost #MondayBlogs
REKINDLE THE LIGHT WITHIN: CORINNE RODRIGUES
Have you ever been at a place in life when everything that can possibly go wrong is happening? Have you reached a point in your life, when you feel that you’ve just about had enough? You’re hurtling down the road of despair and sorry. And you want to sneak away. Hide from life. Go somewhere quiet and lick your wounds. Vegetate even. You disconnect from people to protect yourself from further hurt.
Your inner darkness seeks more darkness. You want to give in to it. And yet, somewhere deep within, you are longing for Light. You are longing for someone or something to rekindle the light within you.
Mother Teresa shares this experience in the book ‘Come Be My Light’:
We went to the outskirts of Bourke where all the Aborigines were living in those little small shacks made of tin and old cardboard. I entered one of those little rooms and told the man living there, “Please allow me to make your bed, wash your clothes, to clean your room.”
He kept saying, “I’m alright, I’m alright.”
“But you will be more alright if you allow me to do it.”
Then he allowed me, and at the end, he pulled from his pocket a little old photograph of his father. I said, “You are so like your father.” He was overjoyed. I blessed the photo, gave it to him, and it went back into the pocket near his heart.
After I cleaned the room, I found in the corner a big lamp, full of dirt. I said, “Don’t you light this lamp, such a beautiful lamp?”
He replied, “For whom? Months and months nobody has ever come to me. For whom will I light it?”
So, I said, “Won’t you light it if the Sisters come to you?”
And he said, “Yes.”
So, the Sisters started going to visit him for only about 5 to 10 minutes a day. They started lighting that lamp. After some time, the man got into the habit of lighting the lamp himself. Slowly, slowly, slowly, the Sisters stopped going to his shack (although they used to go every morning).
I forgot completely about my first visit, and then after two years he sent word, “Tell Mother, my friend, the light she lit in my life is still burning.”
HOW TO REKINDLE THE LIGHT
The reason I’m sharing this story is not to highlight Mother Teresa’s kindness and works. Of that there is no doubt. But I want to talk about how our disconnection in times of pain and hurt dims the light within us.
When we are not willing to allow another in, when we close ourselves off from others, when we don’t want to expose our vulnerability, our light goes out. Then, cut off from others, we can’t find any reason to rekindle the lamp.
Ironically, this encounter took place when Mother Teresa herself was in a dark place.
To allow another to reach out to us, like the old man allowed Mother Teresa and her sisters, takes courage. By reaching out to light another’s lamp, despite her own darkness, Mother Teresa created a connection.
Owning our vulnerability, letting another witness our pain, reaching out to others in our pain, these are all ways of rekindling the light within.
Our hurt and pain can become a means to connection – a way to rekindle the light within.
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A lover of words. A self-acceptance blogger. A blogging coach. A book reviewer. A woman happily journeying through midlife, moving from self-improvement to self-acceptance and enjoying being herself. I write about life, wellness, relationships at Everyday Gyaan. An avid reader, Corinne reviews books at CorinneRodrigues.com and offers coaching to writers and bloggers and anyone looking to explore their creativity at The Frangipani Creative, located in Secunderabad, India.
She also happens to host one of my favourite prompts #MondayMusings
Corinne wrote on self-love in a post titled “Filling Yourself Up” for last year’s blogiversary.
This guest post has been written as part of my Third Blogiversay celebrations that started today. NatashaMusing turns 3 on 6 December, 2019.
Please mark your calendars, and join me here with my very talented blogger friends who will be gracing NatashaMusing the next six days with posts on some of my favourite genres: Musings and Reflections, Photography/Art, Travel, Well-Being and Fiction.
Corinne Rodrigues of Everyday Gyaan : 2 December, 2019; #MondayMusings
Tulika Singh of Obsessive Mom : 3 December, 2019; #Musings
Robert Goldstein of Art By Rob Goldstein : 4 December, 2019; #WordlessWednesday
Esha Mookherjee of My Soul Talks : 5 December, 2019; #Wanderlust/Travel
Keith Hillman of Keith’s Ramblings : : 6 December, 2019; #Fiction
Damyanti Biswas of Daily (W)rites : 7 December, 2018; #Fiction
16 thoughts on “Rekindle The Light Within: #MondayMusings #Blogiversary #GuestPost #MondayBlogs”
I can relate to this. My “dark places” are blessedly temporary. The quote about the two wolves speaks to me:
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all.
One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other is good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
This version is from https://www.aidamuluneh.com/the-wolf-you-feed-1
Wow Holly! This is so beautiful ♥️
Thank you so much for sharing it with me just what I needed to hear today.
Lots of love.
Beautiful, thought-provoking post by Corinne to start off the blogversary week, Natasha! I love the wisdom she shares and how we can open ourselves to let the light in during difficult times. It is something that strikes one only when one has gone through those life-changing moments and struggled with the darkness. Acceptance of one’s situation and reaching out to let light flow inwards is a beautiful way to cope with those confusing times. I’ve seen people block out the people and the light and suffer for years but they never seem to question their own action or inaction as the case may be.
Have always loved how simply, and seamlessly Cory shares these nuggets of wisdom. No wonder I asked her to grace NatashaMusing yet again, this year.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this.
congrats Natasha on your blog’s birthday! Keep sharing and connecting amazing bloggers.
Thanks so very much, Arvind for the wonderful wishes. 🙂
Both Corrine’s words and those of Mother Teresa are very thought-provoking especially for someone such as me who’s never actually found oneself in a dark place, at least, not yet.
An interesting post to start off your week Natasha.
Be blessed always, Keith. 🙂
Thanks a bunch.
This is a lovely way to celebrate the anniversary of your blog. Loved reading this post by Corinne. Looking forward to the other posts lined up.
Happy Blogiversary in advance.
Thanks Jyothi. Always a pleasure to have you swing by.