First of all, Fear of The Dark is a badass song by Iron Maiden. Aside from that it’s also a legitimate Fear that, sooner or later, everyone experiences. The dark on its own might not be too frightening because it’s just a black mass that sits there and doesn’t do a whole lot but there’s a lot more to it than just that. This Fear can be directly related to claustrophobia (Fear of enclosed spaces which I somehow haven’t written about) or just not knowing what’s lurking among the shadows. And really, that’s the scariest part; not knowing what could be surrounding you in the darkness. Sure, it might just be a few spiders or dust bunnies today, but tomorrow it might be the ghost of an axe murderer. See what I mean about the dark?
Fear of the Dark never really goes away. You can turn on a nightlight, sure, but then that just makes those creepy shadows that seem to follow you wherever you go. So you hide under the covers where it’s even darker because irony is important to you. But what else can you do? If you stand up to turn on the light you risk being pulled into the closet by a demon or having someone grab your ankles from under the bed. During the day, the sun is shining, people are happy (and visible) and everything in the world seems great. Then it hits a certain point when everything changes. The sun sets, people seem terrifying (the ones you can see, anyway) and it’s like everything around you that was made out of smiles turns into a sinister clown with hooks instead of hands. It’s just the worst!
So what can you do about this Fear? You can’t just live your life afraid of the dark because I’m pretty sure it’s unavoidable. Unless you live in a room with just four walls, no windows and bought enough industrial-powered lights to burn your retinas any time you were feeling so inclined. But that’s not a lifestyle that’s particularly healthy, so I wouldn’t recommend doing that unless your options were between that and living in a hornets’ nest. But really, how often does it come down to those two? More often than you would think. So it’s time to face your Fear and embrace the darkness for what it really is: Absolutely nothing.
There’s a reason why the flashlight was invented. It’s because since the dawn of time, man has Feared the dark. Cavemen invented fire because they were afraid of the dark, it had nothing to do with needing to cook. That’s why there are lights everywhere you go. No one wants to be in the dark. People can say it’s for safety reasons, or convenience, but the truth is everyone is just afraid. If you are in a situation where you can’t see your hand in front of your face, there are ways to drastically improve said situation. For example, you have a phone. Use it. Not to make calls or text someone which you are probably compelled to do, but use the light from the screen as an impromptu flashlight. Unless your phone has a built-in flashlight. Then by all means, use that. Or, if you live in the 1500’s, light a candle and go to the nearest saloon.
The dark is scary. You don’t know what’s going on in there and you can’t exactly just walk into sheer darkness and expect nothing is going to happen. The dark is everywhere and is almost unavoidable. However, the dark is easily conquered thanks to the light which also happens to be everywhere at the same time. All you have to do is introduce the light to the dark. The two of them fight for a bit then the dark either gets up and leaves until the light gets bored and leaves too. Or they co-exist in harmony. That’s how shadows are born. Oh, and if you are wondering “How can two opposite ends of the spectrum be everywhere at the same time?” Shut up.
