When I hear someone else say something that is totally compelling, the words resonate in the back of my head until they settle like superglue behind my eyes. My thoughts simply won't allow me to proceed with the rest of my day without the scribbling of a pen or a brush of keystrokes to preserve it before it fades from memory. My mind, as most of you know if you've read Walls and/or plan to read The Reaper Trials, is strangely twisted. If I hear it, see it, or feel it, I must write it. It's not a choice. It's a necessity.
Thousands of quotes, story ideas, character charts, world-building maps, first drafts, revised drafts, and countless other writings litter my desk at the office, in my home, and by my bed...so when I heard Doctor Christopher Ryan from the Joe Rogan Experience podcast say the quote that changed my day on March 11th, 2015, you bet I had to come home and write it down before I had the chance to forget it.
So what was the quote, you ask?
There is no light without dark.
Simple, right? But for some reason, those six words bounced between my frontal cortex, brainstem, and somehow synced up with my beating heart simultaneously in the span of fifteen weird, impenetrable minutes.
Think about it. You can't truly enjoy good food without the ability to feel hunger. That steak always tastes so much better when you're so starving that you could literally feed on your own left hand.
You can't enjoy peace without the occasional chaos. Those moments of silence really mean something after you've just endured a classroom of 30 high schoolers all with their own questions, concerns, and stories.
You can't enjoy relaxation without stress. When Friday hits and you've just completed a hard five days of time-crunching work, that REM sleep feels like none other.
(Yup, that's a Supernatural drop if you didn't notice.)
The truth is, there is a yin to every yang in our weird little existence we call life. It's what allows us to fully experience the extent of pleasure, joy, and satisfaction.
I am completely convinced: There is truly no light without dark.
I'm always fascinated with the idea of our species' condition. There are so many stories about humans getting caught in horrible, tragic, or unfair situations, yet rising from the ashes like a phoenix to accomplish something great. Humans are burdened with immeasurable fear so that we are burdened with the ability to overcome it. It's like we understand our own destiny a little too well. I think that's why we endure so many painful experiences over the course of our lives, so that we can always strive to attain those ever-elusive moments of inspiration and ecstasy.
I think life is what it's like for a reason. We are meant for something great. We always have been. It's just a matter of enduring the dark so that we can bask in the light.