Filled With Hope

Dear Reader,

What is hope? One definition according to Merriam-Webster is “To desire with expectation of obtainment or fulfillment.” I like that definition. It feels close to my heart. It feels like a part of my very being. You might think that I am overstating things a bit when I say that, so let me explain.

Desire with expectation.

Desire is a spark, a catalyst, that starts us moving forward toward a dream or goal. Expectation is the feeling that we will get there. So hope is the fuel that keeps us moving forward, even when the going is difficult. Hope is what allows us to bounce back after every setback, stronger and better than before.

All human beings are capable of hope.

You may be familiar with the old saying “Hope springs eternal.” I discovered that poet Alexander Pope coined the phrase in his poem “An Essay On Man: Epistle 1,” published in 1733. The full line was actually, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.”

Hope wells up from the heart.

Why?

Hope comes from within. It is not something we find outside of ourselves. Yes, our own hope can be kindled by experiencing the hope of another. We can be reminded to hope. But when the time comes, we find hope waiting inside us, always there, always ready to help us move forward.

On an overcast day, we might say “Oh, the sun isn’t out today.” But the sun is “out”, as it always is; it’s just temporarily hidden behind the clouds. Hope is the same way, always there but sometimes unseen.

In my last post, I stated that human beings are inherently good.  Goodness is an aspect of our true nature. As are hope, and love, and compassion. For a variety of reasons, we may temporarily lose sight of any of those aspects. If that happens for long enough, we may even start to feel as if love or hope have vanished altogether.

But those things have a way of coming back, don’t they?

Think of how you feel, in your body, when you see the beauty of the sun breaking through the clouds, especially after a long darkness. Chances are you feel, intuitively, that you are seeing and feeling something universal, something in nature that reflects something about you and your experience of being human.

Yes, in this time everything seems upside-down. We are seeing a lot of pain, loss, and fear. That pain is very real, and if you or someone you know has been directly affected by this pandemic, my heart goes out to you. And please, feel free to get in touch if you want support.

However, I do believe that there is space for hope even in the toughest of times. We can create that space within us, and allow it to well up in our hearts.

Sometimes, perhaps because of their own fear, people may belittle or make fun of hope.

I am not saying that hope is all we need to move forward, or to succeed. Sometimes we need every bit of our human nature – including courage, persistence, resilience, empathy and joy. All of those things can help us set aside other aspects of the human experience – including fear, doubt, and worry – over and over again.

But hope keeps us moving forward.

And when we do forget our own true nature, we can remind each other, as many times as it takes.

I honor your loving heart,

John