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The production I am involved in is called The Garden. The story captures several people who find themselves without hope because they are caught in various traps of life. The struggle between darkness and light is portrayed through a series of confrontations between symbolic figures of hope and despair. 

My role is to portray the figure of darkness. I assure you that it was not a type casted role. It was quite a challenge for me to figure out how to get into character. It is a dark feeling for me and I spent a lot of time thinking about how I could possibly do this. When I was first approached to do this role, I said no. I didn't even want to consider it. I have always been a white hat character. This is a stretch for me. 

In order for me to finally agree, I had to take a step back and look at the whole picture. When I did that, I realized that to tell this important story in the most powerful way, this dark side must be portrayed. In my preparation for this role, I relied heavily on the quote above. I realized that there must be an opposition in all things. As I prepared, I gained a great understanding of the necessity of this opposition. 

It is clear to me that without opposition and adversity, it would be very difficult for any of us to know the difference between good and evil. There just wouldn't be a way to compare or contrast our different life experiences. But this is not the most important reason.

To me, it is really about learning to choose between the two. Without opposition, there could be no choice. My ability –  rather my freedom – to make choices is one of the things I value most in life. The power of agency makes it possible for me to become who and what I want to become. Can you imagine what life would be like if we did not have this power? It would certainly be a life I would deem not worth living.

My mom taught me that though we have the power to choose, we do not have the power to choose the consequences of those choices. In other words, I can choose to take a nap on the railroad tracks, but I can not choose to escape harm if I lie there too long and fail to awake when a train comes along. If I stay asleep on those tracks, I will die. There is no other alternative. 

Our choices have the power to foster freedom or slavery. We get to pick. If we choose something that is good for us, it usually results in more freedom. If we choose something that is bad for us, we typically pay a price.

The battle between good and evil is not a new story. It influences nearly every story we enjoy. Think for a moment about Star Wars, The Lord of The Rings, The Phantom of the Opera, even the Wizard of Oz. The list goes on and on. Most every story is built around some element of this theme. We can see evidence of it every where we look.

Have you ever given thought to this? What have you learned from your choices? What have you learned from the dark corners of your life? What have you learned from those moments flooded with light? Where do like to be? 

I know I like to stand in the light. It feels much warmer and safer. The light of the day always chases away the fears of the dark night. While standing in the light, I have experienced more lasting happiness and joy than I ever felt while experiencing my dark moments. I do not deny that there was some pleasure in those dark moments, but that pleasure was always temporary and it was always unable to sustain me. I have learned to walk away from those experiences. 

I think this is why I like life so much, because I am constantly engaged in good causes that keep me on a path of improvement. Where do you want to go today?

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