When You Don’t Feel Like Being the Light

I’m writing this early in the week, and if I’m completely honest, I’m just not feeling very upbeat today.

You guys know that I usually try to find the good in things. I’m naturally wired to look for the bright spot, the lesson, the thing I can be grateful for. And when I write these Morning Brew stories, I always want to leave you with something encouraging to carry into your day. But once in a while, it’s hard for me too.

Nothing terrible has happened, thankfully. There’s no crisis going on. I’m just…tired. And today, I think I’m tired of people. There. I said it.

A big part of what I do with ​EatPlant-Based​ requires having a presence on social media—Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and all the rest. If I’m being completely transparent, sometimes I wish I didn’t need any of it.

It takes a tremendous amount of time and money, and the return often doesn’t feel like it matches the effort. But even more draining than that can be dealing with some of the personalities behind those computer screens.

Most people are wonderful. I don’t want that to get lost here. I hear from some of the kindest, most encouraging people, and your emails and comments have lifted me up more times than you could ever know.

But then there are the others. The knee-jerk comments. The complaining. The people who seem to be looking for something to criticize. Sometimes it’s not even what they say—it’s the way they say it. And one negative comment can change the whole tone of a conversation and invite more negativity right behind it.

Joylessness can spread quickly. And, if we aren’t careful, we can let someone else’s attitude steal our joy too. I think that’s where I found myself today. I was letting a handful of voices become louder than all the good ones. Maybe you’ve done that too.

Someone says something hurtful, and suddenly that’s the conversation you replay in your head—not the ten kind things someone else said. One person is rude at the grocery store, difficult at work, or unnecessarily critical, and somehow they get to come home with us and occupy space in our thoughts for the rest of the day. Why do we give them that much power?

As I sat here thinking about all of this, one familiar verse came to mind. “You are the light of the world.” — Matthew 5:14

I’ve always loved that verse, but today I thought about it a little differently. Light is easy when everything around you is bright. It’s much harder when you’re standing in a place that feels dark. And maybe that’s exactly when it matters most.

Jesus didn’t tell us to be the light only when people are kind to us. He didn’t say to shine only when we’re appreciated, rested, encouraged, or surrounded by people who make it easy.

Sometimes being the light means refusing to pass along the darkness someone handed you. That hit me today.

I can’t control the person on the other side of a computer screen. I can’t make someone kinder, happier, or more thoughtful before they hit “post.” And I certainly can’t fix every unhappy person I encounter.

But I can decide what happens to that negativity once it reaches me. And believe me, that doesn’t mean I don’t struggle with it.

There are times when I type out an entire response to someone, and then sit there looking at it before finally hitting the back button and deleting the whole thing. Because as much as part of me wants to defend myself, explain my side, or point out why a comment was unnecessary, I know where that road usually leads.

More back and forth. More frustration. More of my time and energy handed over to someone who probably wasn’t looking for a thoughtful conversation in the first place. So I delete it.

Not because I don’t have anything to say. Trust me, sometimes I have plenty to say. But because I refuse to let someone else pull me into a place where my own light starts to dim. I don’t have to carry their negativity. And I definitely don’t have to hand it to someone else.

Maybe being the light today doesn’t mean feeling cheerful and positive every second. Maybe it simply means choosing not to let someone else’s darkness change who I am.

I can step away from the screen. I can pray. I can remember the hundreds of kind people instead of focusing on the handful who aren’t. I can protect my joy without becoming hard toward people. And tomorrow, I can try again.

I’m sharing this because I never want these Morning Brew reflections to give the impression that I walk around finding beautiful life lessons in everything while birds sing on my shoulder.

Some days I get discouraged too. Some days I’m tired. Some days I don’t particularly feel like being the light. But perhaps those are the days when choosing to shine means the most.

So, if someone has been getting under your skin lately—or if the negativity around you has been louder than usual—maybe this reminder is for both of us.

Don’t let someone else’s darkness turn down your light. Protect your joy. Give your attention to the good. And when you can, be the person who brings a little light into the room instead of taking it out.

I’m going to work on that today. ❤️

Sept 2, 2026 Morning Brew