Casting Shadows

The other day, while walking across a field, staring into the setting sun, squinting my eyes by default, I allowed the waning light to wash over me. Finally, for a bit of relief I looked away to the opposite side and saw something just as magnificent -my elongated shadow bathed in the glow, stretched much taller than I appear to stand.

Light reveals, defines, and elevates, but it also does something we sometimes overlooked—it casts shadows. Shadows stretch, expand, and shift with the movement of their source, yet they are only made possible by the presence of light. How often do we stop to appreciate how powerful that light truly is? In life, we can get sidetracked by the obstacles—the heavy, looming shadows—that we fail to recognize the brilliance creating them. We mistake the shadow as a sign of obstruction, rather than evidence of the light that fuels our journey. We forget that shadows are elongated echoes of our own presence, reminders that we are standing in something radiant enough to leave a mark beyond ourselves.

The lights in our lives—the passion we pursue, the relationships that uplift us, the convictions that propel us forward—are forces that illuminate our path and give dimension to our existence. Yet, it is easy to dismiss these lights because they do not always appear as grand, blinding beacons. Sometimes they are quiet glows, subtle flickers, or even the warm embers of something still struggling to catch on. But they are there, shaping everything we touch, deepening the impact of our charge, and stretching our influence beyond what we can immediately see.

As artists, as visionaries, as creators, as citizens in a world in need of what awe have to offer, we must embrace both the light and the shadows it casts. We must recognize that our art, our voice, and our presence do not exist in isolation. They extend, they shift, they leave impressions in places we may never step foot. The shadow cast by a single candle can reach across a vast room, just as a single act of courage can inspire beyond our home, city, country, or lifetime..

So today, I invite you stand in your light. Recognize the power in your present and your presence. Claim the shadows too. Allow them to serve as proof that you are moving, growing, and charging forward with purpose. Because where there is a shadow, there is light—yours, ours, and the collective brilliance of those among and beyond us who dare to shine.