I received this poem from the SALT Project a couple of days ago, and have been pondering it ever since. There is so much trauma in the world today, and far too much of it is experienced by children. I am convinced we must deepen our knowledge of the lasting effects of unaddressed trauma. Yet, I think Mary Oliver's understanding that all humans will experience both light and darkness in our lives is a valuable reminder to look deeper into our darkness. There is light to be had there. Trying to avoid the darkness is mostly impossible. We cannot outrun it. So we learn to take root right where we are. There, we find God, and we begin to see.
Someone I loved once gave me
a box full of darkness.
It took me years to understand
that this, too, was a gift.
Mary Oliver
photograph was taken in San Leandro several years ago.
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