Written by Lara
06 Feb 2018
February has brought the sun and snow and I couldn’t be happier with it, after a full month of darkness and cloudy days.
Well, my friends, it is time for me to confess that my first experience with the Nordic darkness was not (at all) the way I expected it would be.
It was hard. Much more difficult to adapt than I thought it would be, but at least I know that great part of it was my fault, as I underestimated the darkness and all the advice on how to deal with it.
I really don’t know why, but I was dumb enough to convince myself that all those darkness talks were a dramatic reaction to a “simple, and not so long inconvenient”. And as you can anticipate, I was completely wrong!
We, Brazilians, like to call ourselves sons and daughters of the sun and it makes total sense, as I, for example, lived most of the life in a city where the temperature never gets below 20 Celsius (yes, you read it right) and where the sun shines almost every day.
The Swedish darkness was a challenge, different from everything I had experienced before, and it showed me how connected and dependent on nature we all are and how the weather can shape our lives and emotions.
However, looking back to the last months, I realize how much I grew as a person and how important it is to learn to embrace not only the cycles of nature but also our own and to make the most out of it.
The darkness made me realize many things, especially how important it is to own my thoughts and emotions and that no matter what happens, I can always bring “my sun” and change my perspectives about the exterior world.
It also taught me to be more resilient and positive about circumstances and to see the beauty in having dark and introspective moments in addition to sunny and expansive ones.
It made me more appreciative of simple moments, like the ones I had this weekend when the sun finally came up and led me to a long and contemplative walk. 
It has transformed and strengthened in a way that I could never expect, surprising me every day with new challenges and new opportunities to look inside.
It made me get in touch with myself in a deep way, eliminating exterior distractions and providing precious moments of teaching how to be a more patient, tolerant and soft person.
And even though I know the darkness is not gone yet, I must say I am already grateful for what it has done to me already, teaching me that just like nature itself, life is all about balance, adaptation, and transformation.
So, my suggestion for you on how to deal with the darkness in Sweden is to embrace it and you will see how powerful it can actually be to teach lessons about life and yourself 🙂
