How the Light Gets In

from Leonard Cohen's Anthem:

Ring the bells that still can ring.
Forget your perfect offering.
There is a crack in everything.
That's how the light gets in.

In the midst of dark, depressive thoughts ~ feeling broken into pieces myself ~ this snippet of Cohen's poem brings me hope. The final couplet repeats within my mind, yet I love all four lines. It's a reminder that parts of my broken self "still can ring" ~ they remain sound and whole and interact in the world in a healthy way. When my dark belief moans that only my most "perfect" form is good enough, I slip into the warmth of not needing to be a "perfect offering" in order to be useful, acceptable, healthy.

Those last two lines fill me with the same awe as any prophetic statement. Light can only enter my life, my being, my prayers through the cracks, the imperfections. The words resonate within me and I relax. I feel hope seeping in through the various cracks in my life. It helps bring me out of the Darkness and into the Light.

Do you ever feel darkness closing in around you? Are there other descriptions you give to that feeling of being alone in the world? What brings you hope? How do Cohen's words affect you? Are there other words that bring you more hope? light? prayer?