Good evening/morning/afternoon keen readers,

“Beloveds, we wake up in the morning to darkness and watch it turn into lightness with hope” (Spahr 15)

Spahr’s perspective in this quote sparks a very genuine feeling in me. Sometimes, when you wake up in this world, it’s dark. What is lucky about the situation that myself, and spahr, have found ourselves in is that our darkness turns to light. We have been lucky enough to experience the side of the world where happiness and joy is expected as a given. That we deserve happiness in this world and for things to be given to us. What Spahr acknowledges in this line, abstractly, is that we are in this position, but that “we” doesn’t refer to everyone.

Beds are an equalizer, no matter where you are in the world, you have a bed. Your bed may look different than the next person but wherever you lie down to sleep, that is your bed. This one act both unites and pulls us apart. What follows our wake up is what distinguishes us. Someone may wake up to darkness, but there morning routine of a healthy breakfast and exercise is all it takes for them enter the joyful lightness of their day. Whereas someone who wakes up after a night of sleeping on the streets has no escape from their darkness. It’s not something that any amount of sunshine is going to change.

Spahr uses darkness both figuratively and literally. We wake to darkness until the sun rises and we are met with lightness, this aspect is another equalizer of waking up. We all experience the darkness of night and the lightness of day to some degree. The darkness that we wake to, figuratively, is what tears us apart. We, speaking from the perspective of the privileged, have the benefit of escape from our darkness. We can put it behind us each day. What people who live in situations void of privilege experience is a darkness that isn’t as easy to shake, a darkness that encompasses their identity. Spahr is acutely aware of her privilege in this line and it is reflected throughout her poem.

As I often do, I’m going to end this blog with some reflective questions. What does it like to hide your darkness? To fake the happiness and joy and show the world a face that doesn’t reflect your internal emotions? On a day to day basis how many people experience a darkness inside them not visible to the rest of us? How much darkness do I have that people don’t see? How much do you have?

Thanks for reading,

Isaiah