‘We need darkness to see the stars; We need darkness for our light to shine’ by Shiloh Moore 30/8/25
Recently I had a ‘good patch’ where I was blooming, flourishing, in flow for a few months. It was absolutely incredible, I’ve never dreamed I could experience such joy, while still being severely ill. During this time I drew myself as a sunflower ‘blossoming, flourishing.’ A sunflower symbolising hidden disability, blooming for all the world to see.
Then I had three weeks totally bedridden with a virus and had no voice. It was terrifying fearing this could be my new norm. Being so limited again. I meditated 24/7 to get through and it was like a silent retreat, it was somehow rejuvenating!
I started to recover and return to activity, then my mood turned and I had a week of fear, anxiety, paranoia, catastrophising, ruminating, anticipatory angsting, and pure terror. Familiar feelings of darkness I had hoped I had left behind. It came out of nowhere and was terrifying. Throughout this I had exceptional care, kindness, and connection with carers, friends, family and community.
Saturday night I felt I was getting through it, and I meditated and visioned. I was a sunflower, but no longer a lone, blooming sunflower, we were a field, a field full of sunflowers, blooming by day, but we can’t always bloom. We wilt but when the next season comes, we will rise again.
Then the words came to me
‘We need darkness to see the stars.
We need darkness for our light to shine.’
We need darkness to see billions of us light up the night with infinite light, all across the universe. My niblings, friends, family, careteam, crushes, community, mentors, guides, world leaders, public figures, figures throughout history, passed friends, ancestors, future generations…our light shines, and we need the darkness to see our light. We need not be afraid of the darkness, because we are in this together. We do not fight alone. Together we are strong. We live together in hope, in light, connecting through the night.
Then a new day dawns and we no longer live in darkness.
– Shiloh Moore 30/8/25