Growing up my dad would tell us a story from a time when he lived in Japan in the 1970s. Often when he returned to his apartment, he would hear the scatter of cockroaches. To be able to kill some of them, he would roll up newspaper and wait for just the right moment before clicking on the light. As soon as the light came on, the roaches began to scatter. This gave him enough time to swat a few before they retreated to the cracks and shadows.

Such it is with life. We are living in a time of much darkness. A time of “dirty deeds, done dirt cheap”, as the Australian rockers of AC/DC sang about decades ago. I often ask my patients to imagine themselves in a dark room. Pitch black. Not even a sliver of light. I ask them to tell me what they would do to change the situation.

Nobody ever responds with “take away the dark.”

I get answers like “open the window”, “light a candle”, “turn on a flashlight”, or “open the door”. This illustrates the point I would like to make. We cannot rid ourselves of the dark by removing the dark. We have to turn on a light. I’m no physicist but I remember an old phrase attributed to Arisotle: “Nature Abhors a Vacuum”. The sentiment goes that if you remove something, it will be filled in with something else. I see this with my patients struggling with substance abuse. Removing one addictive substance can sometimes lead to replacing it with another addiction, unless behaviors change along the way.

So in a time of darkness and conflict and division, how do we “add light”? One thought that came to me several months ago was this: “Stop Consuming. Start Creating.” Such a simple phrase. I liked it so much I turned it into a wallpaper for my phone. It’s a gentle reminder to me every time I fire it up to not waste my time endlessly scrolling feeds. I repeat those words to myself multiple times throughout the day.

After that phrase came to my mind, I started writing more. I’ve averaged two blog posts per month for the last four months. Last month I finally started a podcast—something I’ve wanted to do for years. We’ve released three episodes and next week will release our fourth. The show is called Community Guidelines, and we talk about medical freedom, informed consent, and natural medicine.

During my second year of medical school, I met one of my (now) best friends, Dr. Trevor Sexton. He runs a private practice called Compass Health Clinic in Show Low, Arizona. It was then in 2013 that we brainstormed the idea for a book. It’s been a long road, but we are finally getting to the point of publishing. Our goal is to have it available for purchase on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It is a book about the intersection of religious culture, nutrition, and natural health. It’s been a long time coming and we’re really excited to unleash it into the world.

The only way to get rid of the darkness is to add light. In the scriptures, Jesus tells us to share our light with the world.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.

Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

What are ways that you can share your light with the world? Everyone has been blessed with different talents. Join me and let’s squash the roaches together.