Yesteryear Furniture

Light defines what we can register. Light is the energy that uncovers the world in front of us. Whether it is street lighting, store lighting or bathroom lighting, we rely on it to find see what is around us. In order to Progress lighting, is used to illuminate the path. What often gets forgotten are the dark areas. Without shadows, without contrast, the view becomes flat and depth perception becomes difficult. The same is true of our internal lives, the shadows are part of what make up a personality. It is often what lurks in the shadows that forms our lives and determines many of the choices we make.

In cinema the director of photography paints with light. He or she is consumed with light ratios, the amount of dark to light. A scene in a room at night would have greater ratios then a scene during the day, creating near black areas of the screen. Daylight scenes would still have areas of contrast, but the shadows would still hold visible objects. It is an interesting question when applied to our own day to day life, what is the light ratio? Are we unaware of the details in the shadows of our soul or can we see enough details to know the nature of our selves? If our internal world was nothing but bright light, would we be able to distinguish between the light and dark in another person? Should we even try to dry out all of the shadows?

Any story worth telling will be filled with conflict. A film about happy people doing happy things in a happy world is not a compelling or interesting way to spend a couple of hours. We are interested in stories about people struggling to overcome obstacles. In most good stories about heros, the hero has a character defect, an Achilles heel, or kryptonite. Many of the greatest films had flawed protagonists and villains with redeeming qualities. From The Godfather to Avatar, we are attracted to characters that grow and change, confronting their limits in thinking or feeling and rooting for them. The public attraction is based on our own desire to defeat the obstacles that every life faces.

Not a single soul has walked the earth that hasn’t been confronted by obstacles, either internal or external. Most will tell you that confronting these challenges has brought them character and compassion. Whether the shadow in our lives is created by grief, fear or insecurity, it is often these shadows that bring depth to our lives and make us wise and hopefully happier.

When the shadows are embraced and we no longer hide our perceived flaws or vulnerability, then we are able to be fully who we are. By confronting our shadows, we often realize the light that brings us joy.