The latest storm to hit our
island has passed into history, leaving many without electrical power. For
many, this also meant living without heat and running water. We were fortunate on our lane. The power was restored within eight hours and
we suffered little inconvenience as daylight saving time has just come into
effect. We did not have to sit in
darkness.

Then, little by little, a
soft glow appeared here and there as our neighbors located their emergency
supplies and began to adapt to the power outage - no blazing lights, just the
softness of a candle or an oil lamp here and there, visible through the gusting
rain.
I’ve been pondering what it
means to sit in darkness - - waiting for light.
The line from the prophet Isaiah kept misting through my brain: The
people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a
land of deep darkness - - on them has light shined...

CNN has published what their
rights and responsibilities are under the Constitution so that they can act
responsibly and with freedom.
Religious communities are
raising funds to pay for bus transportation to Washington DC so that any kid
who wants to be in the national protest on March 24 can go free of charge.
Blankets, snacks, and
toiletries are being collected for kids who forget to pack them for the trip.
Grandparents are having conversations with their grandkids about massive demonstrations in the past:
civil rights, anti war, pro peace, anti nukes, women’s rights, and on and on.
The “people” to whom Isaiah
refers were Israel in exile. And exile
is a darkness that we know about now as we live in a kind of exile from
social values and political policies that support harmony, creativity,
peacemaking, respect, mercy, sanity, and
lovingkindness. It is VERY DARK. And yet, softly lit candles and oil lamps
glow from more and more windows. Elections here and there signal the
possibility of change, and with each small change comes the possibility of
greater ones. Kids are mobilizing. Women are speaking out. Elders are telling their stories. Preachers are claiming their prophetic role.
At some point during our own
darkness caused by a power outage, all the lamps we had left on, forgotten
earlier, suddenly blazed into light - startling us with its intensity and
evoking feelings of relief and gratitude.
Neighborhood windows began to blaze again through the wind driven
rain. We celebrated the return of the light. A power outage became a metaphor for
thinking about where we are today as what have appeared to be powerful
structures of order seem to be crumbling in front of our eyes - the result of
ineptitude, inexperience, corruption, lies. deceit and secrecy and, ultimately,
frustration and departure on the part of the few who
seem to be unable to tolerate being part of the reason for darkness anymore.

Vicky Hanjian
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