The antecedents of exhilaration

Locked in a dark room, waiting 
to be let out into the light. But 
light, by itself, may never be eno-
ugh to set the world alight. Might 
be exciting to be illuminated again; 
does not, however, provide that 
spark that kickstarts exhilaration. 
Often the impetus can seem to be 
counter-intuitive. A state of — per-
haps  — depression, suddenly over
turned by something unexpected.