My experience with Night [Archives:2008/1125/Community]
By: Ammar Al-Hawi
Teaching Assistant
Taiz University
[email protected]
As I was making my first appearance on life's stage, I abruptly caught a glimpse of black. Unable to determine what it was, the image continued appearing in my newborn vision from time to time throughout my early childhood, often leaving me speechless.
Only after becoming a conscious child did I first come to understand that this black was simply the darkness of Night. I also learned from others that Night – or Dark Night, as I usually called it – falls upon the Earth when there's no light outside and when most people are sleeping.
Having, to some extent, recognized something about Night's mysterious identity, I loved to watch him slowly come down upon the Earth, remove her spent sunlight and then cover her naked surface with his dark veil. However, the spontaneous feelings of excitement and enjoyment I once experienced deeply throughout my childhood meditations upon Night gradually receded from my mind and vanished into the reckless carelessness of youth.
As soon as I stepped foot onto the fearful threshold of youth, the materialism of daily life beguiled my childhood innocence, kidnapped the purity of my sensations, throttled the fertility of my imagination, murdered the vitality of my manhood and even greedily devoured the morality of my humanity.
Voluptuousness consumed the energy of my days and numbness absorbed the nectar of my nights.
I often arose in the early morning to the noise of car horns, quickly ate my ready-made breakfast, packed my sluggish form into a fixed style of dress, stood before a motionless mirror for grooming and then slammed my apartment door behind me in a habitually rough and violent manner.
Fearing to arrive late, I thrust my way outside through the overcrowded and over-polluted streets toward my workplace. Arriving at my destination, I found my day consumed with the delegation of duties and obligations; thus, I spent my entire day lost in the hustle and bustle of life.
However, I remembered Dark Night, when daylight would depart and darkness would arrive to replace it. Night's darkness always reminded me of the time to return home and relax from Day's boredom and frustrations. Completely exhausted, I would quickly throw myself onto Night's dark bed and immediately sink into a deep sleep.
The next morning, I would awaken to repeat the same boring activities as yesterday or the days before.
Despite my reluctance, poor Night would come again and spread his blanket of calmness over my restless dwelling, thereby affording me safe shelter from Day's arrogance and emotional sterility.
Once, I decided to rebel against the vanity of my daily obligations and release myself from Day's worries and anxieties by hobbling toward the deserted ruins of my childhood and celebrating the happy anniversary of my first meeting with Night.
An absolutely charming silence haunted the scene. There was nothing to disturb the quiet state Earth was enjoying with delight. The blue sky above was wearing the Moon's royal crown of honor.
Our lovely Moon was too happy to be accompanied and encircled by a cluster of brilliant stars, which seemed to enjoy listening to his wonderful hymns of glorification of Nature's beauty.
I then looked around and saw Earth washing away her pains in Night's dark bath of purification. Sensing my presence, Night smiled at me innocently in recognition and welcome as he stirred and turned over to snuggle closer to me. It was as if he was fully acquainted with my hidden pain and sorrow!
Consequently, the awkwardness of our first meeting was soothed and I soon dissolved into greater intimacy with him. Never before had I known such intimacy with any other as I had with Night! Thus, I was encouraged to reveal to him my deepest thoughts and feelings. In return, he listened carefully to my sad sighs and whispered fears, seeming to reflect back affection and understanding.
“Why do so-called modern people always think badly of Night? Why do they often attribute ugliness and sinisterness to his darkness? Why don't they try to see the bright light of reality in his dark depths?” I wondered disappointedly.
The answer to my musings was that such people had become very materialistic and utilitarian in their view of the usefulness of anything in life. They always looked down upon Night and his darkness in disdain, even though they constantly escape to him for salvation from their daily boredom in order to receive his blissful comfort and silence.
From my long talk with Night, I eventually came to realize certain characteristics that I believe I have in common with him. His darkness resembles my dark inner reality, while his simple and quiet mood is akin to my own inclinations toward simplicity and a quiet life. Likewise, his natural and real behavior manifests my dislike of artificiality and falsehood. But above all, we both experience humiliation and loneliness due to others' deliberate neglect in this hollow and empty world.
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[archive-e:1125-v:15-y:2008-d:2008-01-28-p:community]
