The darkness was as deep and uninterrupted as the silence that accompanied it.  Visual & auditory absence that was amplified by the coolness of the enclosure.  The dimensions of the room were impossible to ascertain in the complete absence of illumination.  Whatever the size of the room, it was capacious in what it held for others.  This space held immeasurable sadness, hopelessness, fear, and even despair.  It contained the ruined dreams of many and the crushing disappointment of a committed few who had thought that this shadowed space was an impossible likelihood.  Its darkness seemed the full antithesis of all that it now concealed.

It had begun in light.  A need for light had drawn it, a call for light had predicted it, and its arrival had repeatedly been announced by light.  Those who did not understand nor appreciate it had nonetheless had found their attention captivated by the light.  The light had demonstrated such power that even those who lacked any capacity to see the light had suddenly and joyfully beheld it, forever changed by its entrance into their lives.  Others, who had prided themselves on the appreciation of light had found this too bright and had embraced a blindness that was more comforting than its piercing brilliance.

Whether they embraced it or resisted it, none could deny the presence of something that seemed to hint of the first light ever to shine into a void.  There was a timelessness, an ancient quality to the light that yet seemed to announce newness and birth.   No one encountering this light was left unchanged or unimpressed by it.  Men and women were driven either to joy or to madness by the gentle relentlessness of its power.

Suddenly all those who had basked in the glow found themselves stumbling and crying, unable to see ahead.  Their disorientation all the worse for having seemed to see so clearly before.  The one thing that had been clear in the light now was clouded in uncertainty and defeat.

The light had passed away with the setting of the sun and had not returned with the dawn.  Night had become permanent behind a large stone, blocking out not only light, but hope and victory.

Another sunset confirmed the finality of the darkness over the light.  As a third day dawned with sudden truth for those who beheld a not-final resting place.  In victory, Light had escaped.

This was inspired by a writing prompt: “Light Escaping” in the GCD Writers Guild. If you are a writing & interested in joining the Guild for encouragement & challenge in being a Gospel writer, click the badge on the right.