The Edge of The World

You are not alone in your darkness

She sat on the outer edge of the world, letting the symphony of nature sweep through her soul; removing the dust that had piled up from months of uncaring. Removing the cobwebs that had thickly formed over her aching soul. She looked over the edge and saw the decent, saw the vast cavern that opened its mouth before her, ready to swallow her whole again.

She has made that fall before. Laid at the bottom of the world, broken by the people and sin within it. Curled deep within herself, letting the dust and cobwebs gather. Letting the despair bury her there, hoping to become nothing more than a fossil. Something someone could find and brush off years later, put up in a museum for people to study: the women who fell to the bottom of the earth.

It’s true that she hit rock bottom. But she was not alone. For in that vast, dark, edgy cavern that swallowed her, there was still a faint breeze. And on that breeze carried the whisper of one person whose words reverberated in her soul. Whose words resonated so deeply within her, making her feel less alone. The voice spoke:

The darkness in you has not snuffed out your light.
You cannot see it yet,
How bright your darkness shines for me.
So, I will coax it out of your bones
And shine it upon the sea.
Until the reflection is so great
That your darkness sets you free.
I will carry you from the depths of your despair,
If that is what you wish.
I will wrap you in your light with gentleness and care.
Or perhaps I will join you instead,
In the pit of agony.
For even in the mouth of the darkness,
There your light will shine for me.
I am not afraid of the terror of your darkest days,
I will not cower to its form,
For your light is there to overcome even the heaviest of storms.
So let me be there beside you,
For any other distance will not do.
We can sit on the edge of the world
And watch your light reflect off the sea.
We can sit on the edge of the world
And of your darkness, we will be free.
We can sit on the edge of the world
Looking down upon the darkness,
And hold onto each other like a promise.

It was on that faint breeze that carried those faint whispers that she was able to gain a breath of air and climb her way out. Now she sits on the outer edge of the world, letting the symphony of nature sweep through her soul. The vast cavern opens its mouth before her, but it will not swallow her again. Instead, she will speak those words into the mouth of the darkness for anyone else who needs to hear them, who needs to breathe them in and climb their way out.

Let’s continue the conversation:

1. Has anyone else’s words ever pulled you from the depths of your own despair?

2. How have you been influenced by someone else while in your own darkness?

3. What would you say to someone who is sitting on the edge of the world?

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