Hello,
And welcome back to session 7 of Stillness Speaks.
My name is Colleen,
And today's practice is called Emerging from the Dark.
Nearly three years ago,
Not long after my dad passed away,
I made a choice that changed my life.
I decided to stop drinking,
To stop numbing myself,
And to feel everything instead.
Grief had pulled me into a deep,
Dark place.
For a long time,
I thought the safest thing to do was to soften the edges with distraction,
To blur the hard lines.
But something in me knew I couldn't keep turning away from my own life.
I wanted to feel the sadness,
The joy,
The anger,
The love.
I wanted to live fully,
Even when it hurt.
Emerging from the dark doesn't happen all at once.
It's not a single leap into the light.
It's a slow,
Steady turning toward what's real.
And with each small step,
We begin to see more clearly,
Breathe more deeply,
Live more honestly.
Today,
I invite you to turn toward your own light,
Whatever that means for you right now,
And take one step out of the dark.
Let's begin.
Please find a comfortable place to land.
Letting your body know it is safe to be here.
Closing your eyes,
Dropping your shoulders,
Relax your jaw,
Rest your hands gently on the floor,
Releasing any grasp.
Soften your belly,
Allowing the breath to flow more freely.
Imagine you are in a quiet room just before sunrise.
It's dark,
But not frightening.
A darkness you've been sitting in for some time.
You know this space well.
You've learned its contours,
Its shadows,
Its weight.
Now,
Somewhere ahead,
You see the faintest glow.
It's small,
But steady.
You feel the pull toward it,
Not with urgency,
But with curiosity.
This is the light that waits for you,
The one that has been here all along.
Noticing your breath,
Breathing slowly in and out through your nose.
Let each exhale feel like it's clearing a little more space inside.
On your next inhale,
Silently repeat to yourself,
I choose.
On your exhale,
Silently repeat to feel.
Again,
Inhale,
I choose.
Exhale to feel.
Once more on your own.
Let the words be your permission to meet yourself fully here and now.
With every breath,
Imagine taking a slow step toward that glow.
It brightens just a little as you approach.
Maybe this light is a new beginning,
A relationship healed,
A truth you've claimed,
Or simply the feeling of being alive and awake in your own skin.
Let the light meet you just as you are.
No need to change.
No need to hide.
Now,
Imagine the light surrounding you completely.
It touches your skin,
Warms your heart,
Fills the space within you.
Rest here in this place of openness,
Of clarity,
Of feeling.
My voice will be quiet for a little while.
Rest here in the light,
In the stillness.
When you're ready,
Begin to bring your awareness back to the sounds around you.
Feel the earth beneath you.
Begin to move your fingers and toes.
Roll your shoulders.
Take a deep breath in.
Take a deep breath out.
When it feels right,
Softly open your eyes.
Emerging from the dark is not about erasing the past.
It's about allowing yourself to live fully in the present.
It's a choice you can make again and again.
To feel.
To see.
To step toward what matters most.
May you be well.
May you choose to feel.
And may your own light guide you home.
