Life's Chiaroscuro

By Nancy Rynes, author of Awakenings from the Light
In the visual arts, there is a concept called "chiaroscuro," which is how the interplay of dark and light tones define shapes.

Another way of thinking about it is that the darkness gives form and substance to the light, and the light brings clarity and richness to the dark.

This is also true for the use of warm and cool colors (yellow and blue, for example). The contrast of cool and warm, or dark and light, gives a painting energy, vitality, and dramatic impact. In the visual arts, we need these dichotomies in order to create a work that grabs and holds a viewer's attention.

So what does this have to do with life?

In a painting, the dark isn't judged as "bad", it's simply the absence of light. But the dark areas do give form and structure to the painting. Also, if you look hard enough into those shadows, you'll often see an entire world of rich detail unfold.

Try this for yourself on a sunny day. Go outside and stare at a sun-drenched surface -- the sunny side of a tree, or the light-flooded wall of a building (just don't stare at the sun directly since it can damage your eyes!). Stare at the sunny side of an object for about 30 seconds, then quickly turn your gaze to look at a very shadowed area. This could be the shadowed side of that same tree or the building. Now, what do you see?

At first that shadowed side will look quite dark, maybe even black, but as you stare into it over the next few moments, your eyes will adjust and you'll begin to see detail emerge from the shadow.

Now look at the object as a whole. Does the shadow give shape to the light areas? Does the light look more bright in comparison to the dark?

Art is really a mirror of life on many levels. We all have times in our lives when things seem dark or challenging. Perhaps a relationship ends or a loved one passes away. We might lose a job or receive a serious medical diagnosis.

It's perfectly normal to feel shocked, angry, or saddened by these difficulties. We're human and humans are definitely emotional beings. But we don't always need to view these challenging times as "bad." Depending on the circumstances, we might even be able to find something that we can learn from those challenges. Perhaps there is some kind of "light" that we can discern from those dark times, just as we found that observing the shadow side of a tree allowed us to see the light and detail that actually exists there.
If nothing else, with some of our dark times we may be able to learn something -- about ourselves, about others, or about life in general. Maybe there is a "gift" we can pull from a challenge while still honoring ourselves by understanding that it may still feel difficult. When we allow ourselves time to get a broader perspective on our challenge, we can begin to see that it's not all "bad" and in fact, we may come away with a deeper, richer perspective on life.
Exercise: take a typical, challenging time you had in the past. Choose something relatively benign: an argument with a coworker or friend might be a good place to start. Think about it from today's perspective with time having passed by.
- With your present awareness, when you look back at that challenge, did you learn anything as a result?
- Was there a hidden gift in that situation?
- Did you gain any new insights or appreciation?
- What in your life has improved as a result of this experience?

(Caution: don't try this exercise with anything too serious at first, and don't try it at all if you are suffering from depression, deep anger, or any other serious condition. Instead, please seek the help of a trained mental health professional.)

Here's an example from my life: I dealt with a serious bout of pneumonia in March, 2017. A high fever and coughing plagued me for five days before I was put on antibiotics. This was one of the worst respiratory illnesses I'd ever had but in hindsight, it led to a huge epiphany about the direction of my art and creativity. Sitting on the couch with a fever for several days, not able to eat or drink much, by day five I felt like I was in some kind of altered state of consciousness. Before my illness, I had been wondering why my art and creativity felt "flat" or uninteresting to me. But on day five of that illness, I had one of those "ah-HA" moments: up until that point, my paintings had often reflected what other people (specifically, my father) enjoyed or thought I should paint. My paintings didn't always reflect ME and what I wanted to express. So even though I went through a horrible illness, I came away from it with a clearer perspective about my life and my art.

And in case you're wondering, yes, I do this kind of exercise with most of the things that challenge me. I try to find some kind of a gift, message, or opportunity in every situation. I don't wish tough times on anyone but if they do come along, with a little self-compassion and contemplation we might be able to find some kind of light or silver lining.

Perhaps that light brings us to more love, caring, or patience. Maybe it teaches us about self-care, vulnerability, gratitude, or forgiveness. Or maybe you learn that, deep down inside, you are strong and with the help of family and friends, you can sail through any storm that life sends your way.

I hope this little practice of contemplating the lessons or gifts from challenging times helps get you started on your own path to more heaven in your life.

I wish you heavenly (and earthly) love.

Blessings,

Nancy

Upcoming LIVE, ONLINE Class

Starting July 11, I'll be teaching a LIVE, ONLINE version of "Heaven on Earth 101: Living in Peace." This class has met with rave reviews when I teach it in person so I've decided to offer it via Zoom video conferencing. This class will meet five consecutive Wednesdays at 6PM Pacific time. Each class will be one hour. We'll also have an optional Question and Answer session as well, so you'll have access to all 6 class meetings, plus class notes and handouts, plus recordings of all of the classes so that you can view them again and again. Videoconferencing allows you to take a class with me, live, from the comfort of your own home! Total cost for the entire bundle is $60. More information and registration here: http://NancyRynes.com/workshops.

Stuff You Might Have Missed

Archive: Past Newsletter Issues Article: Lives Changed by NDEs (Boulder Daily Camera) Article: Awakening to Life (Pages 6-10, Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology, Summer 2016) Article: The Meaning of Life Article: The Things I Learned from Dying
Bio: Nancy Rynes is a speaker, artist, and author of "Awakenings from the Light" (available from Amazon.com). Nancy's books and workshops teach you how to bring a little bit of Heaven to your life on Earth. She divides her time between Seattle, Washington and Tucson, AZ. Check out her website at NancyRynes.com 
Copyright © 2018 Nancy Rynes, All rights reserved.