Yesterday was Diwali. If you missed it, I guess its safe to say that perhaps there are still rocks in SA where people live under.

To all of us, Diwali means something different, but there will always be commonality in all of the creative explanations of what Diwali is and what it means. There’s the Ram and Sita story, there’s the light over darkness theme and then there’s very naive explanation of Diwali being “Christmas for Indians”.

It’s the “light over darkness” theme that I’d like to highlight. The symbolism is usually drawn into a conversation of “good over evil” and while the symbolism is a very relevant one in the world that we live in today, there is another view. A view that is preached by some, ignored by many. Gareth Cliff has had a swing at it recently with his, “No Negativity Wednesday’s” campaign. Whether he is the source of the campaign or not, is irrelevent. What is relevant is his ability to make the message accessible. Accessible to his hundred’s of thousands of radio listeners, +/- 195 000 Twitter followers and the other channels that he chooses to channel his sermans.

His message is clear by its name alone. Embrace the positive, look at the brighter side of life. Not as a single isolated incident, day or day of the week, but as a lifestyle. Sitting in traffic, can be seen as an opportunity to listen to music. This list of examples can extend through every aspect of day-to-day life.

I’m not one to preach though, those who know me, know very well that my patience can be timed with a flaming matchstick, but today, I pledge to embrace the spirit of Diwali into my life. I know that it will be impossible to embrace it entirely, but I hereby accept the Chuck Bass challenge by saying “YES”.

Diwali’s lesson should not just be about one day, but about a lifestyle of good beating evil, light beating darkness and positivity nailing negativity to the wall.

Guru Krishna, a local priest in Cape Town, has often spoken about Seva, work offered to God. His talks are normally along the queue of everyone performing Seva at home, will eventually result in the world being a better place. Its this same theory that can be applied to Diwali’s life lesson, where if positivity is embraced by all, eventually the world will end up a better place. Accept the challenge and embrace the spirit of Diwali!