Poem for Winter Solstice-To Face the Dark

by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

To Face the Dark by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer


To face the dark,
one does not need a light.
Nor does one need a watch,
a feather, a melody, a sword, a pen.
One doesn’t even need a friend.
To face the dark,
one needs only to face the dark.
There is something easier then
about the facing, when we know
we need no preparation.
Nothing is asked of us except
the willingness to face the dark,
the willingness to pause
in that moment when we
cannot see, cannot know,
cannot float on the sea of habit,
cannot fly on the feathers of routine.
But already, I’ve taken this too far.
It’s so simple, the invitation,
that it’s easy to miss what is asked.
Not a journey. Not even a step.
Just the chance to face the dark,
to meet yourself in that facing—
and to notice what's being erased
and what’s doing the erasing.

From Rosemerry: Here friends, as we enter the longest night of the year, is the final (14th!) track on the Dark Praise spoken word album (releasing at 12:01 a.m.  on 12/01). It's a collaboration with guitar player Steve Law in which we explore the many ways the dark nourishes us and helps us grow. Videos feature the art of Marisa S. White and the video magic of Tony Jeannette. The album itself is available for free download on Spotify, Apple Music, and everywhere you listen to music. You can also purchase it to support our creative efforts on Bandcamp. 

If you have missed any of the videos, you can watch them all on my youtube channel's Dark Praise playlist. Please enjoy and share these videos--we made them for you!! 

My thanks to Rosemerry. Listen and watch here: