The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it.   – Barbara Kingsolver

The news these days has not been good. There is so much fear and suffering all around the world. The Corona Virus, signs of destructive climate change, war. We may feel overwhelmed and frightened at our own powerlessness to help.

It’s at times like this that I like to turn to what people who have faced tremendous difficulties have said about life while hanging on to shreds of hope – like Nelson Mandela: “I am fundamentally an optimist. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.” Or the words of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who lost his country, his people: “No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful an experience is, if we lose our hope, that’s our real disaster.”

Yes, I agree with these dynamic people who inspire us. We need to be hopeful even in bad times. We know that human history is not only about suffering and cruelty, but it’s also filled with compassion, sacrifice, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in these confusing days will determine how we live. If we see only the worst, our ability to do something will be damaged. We need to remember those times and places where people have behaved wonderfully. This will give us the boost to take action. Or as Howard Zinn once wrote, “Hope will at least give us the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.”

In my own little world of wrestling with my Paraneoplastic Syndrome, cancer, and my inability to walk without assistance, hope is something I have learned to hang onto and to put daily into perspective. I have to remember that I live in a country with top of the line medicine, with awesome hospitals – like the amazing Mayo Clinic that has saved my life, and compassionate doctors who never gave up on me and who fought for me. Yes, I know that hope can spring forth even in suffering, loss, and fear.

So I agree with Robert Fulghum, who wrote: “I believe that hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is a cure for grief.” And I love Emily Dickinson’s words: “Hope is the thing with feathers / That perches in the soul / And sings the tune without the words / And never stops at all.” I hope you will read that last line several times!!

• Are there things that you can focus on that are hopeful for you, that can change your perspective?
• Are there issues and losses that make you feel that hope has left your heart and soul?

Beloved Creator of Hope, sometimes we come to You feeling hopeless, afraid, thinking that we or the world are really in bad shape. But maybe it isn’t as bad as we think. Maybe it will work out. Perhaps we don’t need to worry. If only we put our trust in You, and move forward with faith and hope and confidence in the future. Then hope will never stop. Amen.

Joy Carol

www.joycarol.com