“Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light.” – Albus Dumbledore
These are dark times. There’s no question about that. With Drumpf, Brexit, Syria, and ISIS, there is no avoiding it — the darkness. Not even little South Africa is immune. There is instability and uncertainty everywhere amongst us, and there appears to be no light at the end of this tunnel.
Indeed, I’ve felt the darkness here too. With my time in South Africa running out, it’s hard to focus on the good, nay, the perfect things in front of me. The darkness is a powerful force. And it is nearly impossible to ignore. The darkness can control my thoughts. The darkness can control my actions. And despite my greatest efforts to fight it, I’ll admit there have been many times when the darkness has won.
But something I’ve learned about the darkness is this: it is useful. It is often in the darkest of times that we find out what we are truly capable of. It is in times like these that we discover our true character, our true desires, and our true selves. And it is these things that can bring light to even the darkest of times. Indeed, there is always light. We just have to look in the right places for it.
And so, despite the seemingly insurmountable darkness in front of us all, we cannot forget the light — however dim it might appear to be. Indeed, it is that light that is the only thing worth living for. Because when you’ve felt it, like I have during my entire stay in Cape Town, you’ll never want to lose it again. So as we walk into this great unknown together, let’s not forget the light in and around us all. I know I won’t.