Holding On To Hope

I learned yesterday that the results of a nationally conducted poll, taken just before the holidays, showed that only 18% of the country is extremely hopeful about the future! What a sad realization about the current mood of the nation. 

Sure, we are in the middle of a pandemic, inflation is spiraling out of control, interest rates are poised to increase, and the supply chain still has missing links.  All of which contributes to our outlook on life.  But this poll was taken during the holiday season! During a time fueled by hope, and before the latest covid surge, before talk about mortgage rates and prices in the stores.  Yet it still only managed to reach 18%! 

Why does this matter? It matters because hope is a key ingredient that drives us forward.  There is a lot of research that shows that hope helps us manage stress and anxiety, helps us cope with adversity and nourishes resilience. It plays a vital role in our sense of well-being and happiness and motivates positive action. Hopeful people believe they can influence their goals, and that their efforts can have a positive impact on their lives and the lives of others. 

This Monday is a day for reflection. A day that celebrates the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and acknowledges the impact he has had on this country, indeed the world.  A man driven by his sense of hope. An unwavering, unapologetic, abundance of hope, that one day all people will be treated as equals. 

Whilst things might not be great right now, and we all have much to do and deal with, we have to hold onto hope.  We have to believe that the future will be better than the present and know that we have the power to make it so. More importantly, we have to all inspire our children to have hope, that the future they will create, will be better than the dreams of the past.

As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”

I hope you all have a wonderful time on Monday.