The Shadow

One bright sunny morning, recently, I walked through my dining room and noticed how the sun was shining on the bright pink cylamen sitting on the table. I noticed how the light brought the color vividly, to life. And then I noticed the shadow. I noticed the darkness, contrasting with the light.

Have you seen your shadow, lately?

This week's episode of "Grey's Anatomy" explored the shadow side of a brilliant neurosurgeon, whose gifts brought healing for many. But when a mistake leads to the death of a patient, the surgeon is overwhelmed by his shadow. When presented with the evidence of the many lives he could not save, all he can see is the shadow. It doesn't matter to him that many of them had reached a point beyond the capacity of medicine to bring healing, when they turned to him. It doesn't matter to him, that by using his gifts in these last-resort cases, he gained knowledge that could advance the boundaries of medical science. Facing what is beyond his control, discovering the limits of his abilities, seeing the consequences of his mistakes, experiencing the difficult emotions that come up, the shadow is overwhelming, even terrifying.

Have you seen your shadow lately?

This week, I've been thinking about the cross as the shadow of our faith. In some parts of the world, churches, even stadiums are filled to capacity on Good Friday and empty on Easter. For people who live every day of their lives in the shadow of death or violence or suffering, the cross of Jesus is a profound source of comfort. Not so much among those who fill churches on Easter, the joy and hope of resurrection eclipsing the shadow of the cross.

The "Grey's Anatomy" episode ended with the statement....one way to get rid of the shadow, is to turn out the light. Where does that leave you? In darkness. In this season of Lent, perhaps the idea is not to get rid of the shadow, but to turn toward the light of Jesus, where as for my cyclamen, our brilliant colors may be exposed alongside our shadow. Perhaps there we find God, loving both the light and the shadow, in us. Perhaps there we find the courage to walk with the suffering and to trust the path God has provided for our healing, for our salvation.

Blessings, on the Way,

Cheryl