Quote Of The Week

It can be hard to have hope these days.

On the one hand, we all want to feel hopeful. Hope encourages us to look forward confidently, and we may expect hope itself is necessary for us to get what we desire when someone succeeds despite the odds. In this way, hope is also a refuge, akin to having faith.

On the other hand, we live in such difficult times that I have heard from many people that they feel almost frightened or foolish to hope that things in their world will be better. They, and I, have been alarmed and frightened by how much deceit and duplicity we see around us. It has been very hard not to get lost in the chaos and it takes strength not to dwell there.

So many people feel torn. Remaining hopeful feels like a useless place to put their energy, but they don’t want to be hopeless either.

First, there is hope in remembering that, over the course of my life, things have been bleak before, even bleaker than they are now. I am strong, and there is much within me that responds well to adversity. There is hope in that confidence.

We are all stressed at times, all fearful and sometimes despondent. And even if we know what could help move away from these hopeless feelings, we often don’t do them unless we are reminded to do so by being with others in the same situation.

Do the best you can. Live according to your values and intentions, while knowing that you may not always succeed in your aspirations. Feelings of despair and inadequacy are part of the human condition. And when you find community with others, you know you are doing the best you can with what you have.

The rest you can leave in the water.