As told to Hattie Parish. Photographs iStock
I ‘ve been afraid of the dark since I was a little girl. “Remember to lock both doors,” I’d remind my parents after one of them had sung me a goodnight song. I’d remind them every night, so no one could come in from the dark. It’s not like I’m alone in this – humans have always struggled with both metaphorical and literal darkness. While light represents life and safety, darkness has long been an enemy, something unsafe and heralding death. In religious texts dating back thousands of years, we find sun gods on the one hand, and a dark and cold kingdom of the dead on the other. And this dichotomy of the light heaven and the dark hell has persisted in our culture. ‘I think this all comes back to fear. In the dark, you lose the control and perspective you have in the light. It’s a primal thing, designed to help us when we’re in danger, and a healthy respect for the night was quite practical. But we’ve gone too far. Isn’t it light enough now? When you look at a satellite image of the Earth, the side experiencing night is lit up like a Christmas tree. If you live in the city and look out of the window, there will be a greyish, yellow haze between you and the Milky Way. ‘I live in Norway, the land of the polar night, and have a cabin in the mountains in Finse. True darkness can still be experienced there – but I’ve never done it alone. So one December day I headed up there alone to seek natural darkness, knowledge, and to see how long I dare stay.
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