Can't do anything but hope

Staying hopeful in a broken world

Hope is elusive. It evokes a depth deeper than optimism and is founded on a premise that transcends present actualities. It’s often quantified as an abstract emotion, but hope can be actualised and even personified. But in a world full of darkness, pain and present suffering, how does one keep their eyes above the waves?

Adorning the future 

Hope adorns the future. She romanticises what can, with what was. She almost prolongues the lucid image of Porphyrias lover, before her death trusting the outcome would change.  Hope tames darkness, keeping it at bay till morning comes.  What was once thought unrecoverable is given the chance at new life. She keeps the embers amongst the ash aflame, imagining the wildfire that just maybe might break out. Hope gives scope for a miracle. Simply put, hope is a trust that dares to believe in a change in outcome. 

Hold on

For the hopeful, hold on. With the world in disarray looking for the best possible outcome proves difficult. We need more people of hope. People that cling on, even when perilous winds resist you. Ones who see mountains, but imagine the beauty beheld at the summit rather than fixate on the treacherous journey ahead. Surrounded by all types of evils, it seems difficult to even conceptualise the kind of world we wish to see. But as Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr puts it, only in the darkness can you see the stars. People of hope ignite others to see the stars. This powerful force of hope is something that the powers at be so desperately want to take from you. When it’s most difficult, hold on just that bit longer, it can be in that moment where you feel to give up, that things start to change. The hopeful trust that there’s more, and I’ve never seen them be put to shame. 

Thought: Pairing realism and pessimism seems the most convenient. What requires an active pursuit is making optimism and the potential for change your realistic mindset. It’s easy to feel like everything will keep getting worse, what’s harder to do is see the downward trend and hope for a turn of events. When someone’s drowning in a pool we just don’t look at them and expect them to die, but we have hope that a lifeguard will rescue the person. Having hope mobilises you to be the lifeguard. 

When all hope is lost 

Hopelessness is almost the default disposition in our climate. It’s logically the most consistent with the current trajectory of the world. Hopelessness is a state which we want to veer away from. It has no desire to see improvement, lacks zeal and perceives situations more bleak than they actually are. The mindset produces a powerless demeanour, one that catapults into a visious cycle of negativity. It inhibits progression. So what does one do when all hope is lost? We journey on performing a mental c-section, removing the lies that tell you “it’s not going to get better” or “that’s just the way things are, it’s never going to change.” Hopelessness goes with the grain, whilst being hopeful requires an active pursuit. 

The story ends well

As with the best stories, the story of the earth ends well. The metanarrative of the biblical story is one of hope. Through the creation, fall, redemption and renewal chapters, there is a fulfilment of hope. The zenith of the biblical story is a revealing of hope personified. The one who alludes to another Kingdom to come, a new Jerusalem. What makes having hope easier, is putting our hope in the author of the greatest story ever told. Clinging onto this hope, actively search for the diamonds in the rough, whilst intentionally keeping yourself upbeat (Psalm 42:5.)

For the hopeful, keep hoping. For those who have lost hope, cling to something. If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for nothing. Despite the wars, pain and suffering out there, I can be nothing but hopeful, no other state drives me to do something. 

Hope you enjoyed this piece. Share with someone who needs some hope and comment what are you currently hopeful for?

NYA