Happy belated Valentine’s Day! And here’s a happy belated February newsletter to you as well!

The good news is, to paraphrase Mark Twain, we have made it through some of the worst winter storms that never happened. That’s nature’s Valentine to all of us. And, we have passed the midpoint of winter. The sun is rising earlier to awaken the slumbering sky with light, and it is setting later to extend its rays further into the night. We are witnessing the gradual demise of the dominion of darkness. Light is reclaiming its sovereignty over the day. May this be the way for all things to come.

In what ways might you see more light? More good news for you: you have a choice. It’s a matter of your position. Like the sun at the center of the solar system, position yourself in the center, deep within, where the source of light shines forth. The sun is not subjected to the constant cycles of contention between day and night. It’s always in the light, for it is the source of light. And when you know your center, your own Self, which is Consciousness itself, you will see the light — because the source of light is your Self.

The light of Consciousness shines always, even when your mind is turned away from it. That’s when you get lost in the shadows of the light. So turn your mind inward: toward the light, to find your Self. Let your light reclaim its sovereignty.

In an email I received earlier this month, which happens to be Black History month, I saw the following quote from Nelson Mandela. He’s one who maintained the sovereignty of light. Here, he is reflecting on the day that he was released from prison after 27 torturous years. He was imprisoned because of being an activist, for his defiance of the South African government’s unjust and cruel racial practices.

“As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.” ~ Nelson Mandela (1918-2013)

The quote stopped me in my tracks. I cannot even imagine enduring one week of what Mandela had to face. Here’s a man who spent 27 years at the prime of his life in the worst circumstances. He was subjected to verbal and physical harassment by prison wardens. He was confined in a damp concrete cell for several years, which measured 8 by 7 feet, with a straw mat on which to sleep. He spent the days breaking rocks into gravel. Reassigned to work in a lime quarry, he was not permitted to wear sunglasses, and the glare from the lime permanently damaged his eyesight.

He rarely saw his wife and children. At one point he was limited to one visit per 6 months. He was even forbidden from attending the funeral of his mother and, the following year, the funeral of his first-born son, who died in an automobile accident.

At night, when he was not forbidden to do so, he worked on his law degree, which he was obtaining from the University of London.

Nelson Mandela dedicated his life, in prison and out, to carry forth the torch of freedom and justice. Eventually, he became his country’s first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative, multi-racial election. And he refused to use his power for retaliation and vengeance. He focused his government on ending apartheid by fostering racial reconciliation instead.

He had every reason to be bitter and vengeful. But he refused to carry such rancor with him. He had the discerning wisdom to know that if he did, he would remain in prison wherever he stepped. He also knew if he carried the heavy weight of that rancor with him, he would not be able to lift others. It would be a load too heavy to bear. In essence, he let go of the dark past to make room for a brighter future.

The quote reminds me that though I am not locked behind bars, I can still be locked up within my own mind. Anytime I hold bitterness, grudges, vengeance or hatred, I am not free. I suffer solitary confinement and harassment imposed by my own prison warden: my mind.

So my takeaway is:

·     Be mindful of what you carry in your head and heart.

·     If it’s heavy and dark, let it go.

·     Keep your mind turned toward the light. Keep your heart open to let the light shine forth.

·     Keep your heart open to love, not hate; to reconciliation, not vengeance.

·     You have the freedom to choose how to respond to any circumstances, even the worst ones.

·     Hold your torch up high to shine the light others need to see their way through darkness.