What We Hope For Together…

“Celebrating what we hope for together is better than fighting over what we believe separately.” –Steven Charleston

With the divisiveness in our country, I was struck by Steven Charleston’s statement about the power of celebrating what we hope for together in his book, Ladder to the Light. His words offered another reminder to focus on cultivating common ground rather than pushing against what we don’t like.

It’s not easy to shift our gaze away from what we perceive as idiotic or hurtful beliefs and actions of others. Yet, Charleston calls to those of us trusting in the power of hope and love to make this shift anyway. Even when we’re not ready to engage in dialog with people we disagree with, we can always take a moment to imagine they have many of the same hopes we do.

From clean water for all, more life-giving trees to replace those lost in fires and storms, and milder weather globally to good health, safety, and prosperity for loved ones, there are common hopes among us that can begin to help us come together to effect positive change.

In the wise words of Nelson Mandala, “May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” And may you take comfort in the knowledge that millions around the world have many of the same hopes you do.

Hope Is A Choice

“Hope, like every virtue, is a choice that becomes a habit that becomes spiritual muscle memory. It’s a renewable resource for moving through life as it is, not as we wish it to be.”

–Krista Tippett

A Renewable Option

“Hope is a renewable option: If you run out of it at the end of the day, you get to start over in the morning.”