Hope
It’s a funny thing.
Even mysterious.
It’s tough to put your finger on it.
It waxes and wanes, changing on a dime.
Some days we may possess a good dose, while other days, no matter how hard we try, we just can’t dredge it up.
Its presence or absence can color our mood, affect our self-confidence and the way we operate in our life.
What is hope anyway?
Hope is a feeling of expectation and desire that a certain thing will happen.
It’s a feeling of trust.
It provides us with direction.
It anchors one’s soul.
While watching the Stanley Cup Finals, I began to think about hope.
I know—weird, right?
Stay with me.
These guys are tough athletes—driven, focused and relentless.
I was struck by the players ability to stay focused and maintain hope through a fast-paced hockey game where a goal
can be scored in mere seconds.
One could have hope and lose it a thousand times during the course of a game.
I realize they are trained athletes, schooled both physically and mentally.
Some of us might come out of the womb wired to be more hopeful.
But some of us are not.
For those of us who do not possess an unending trough of hope, we must cultivate it.
Similar to other muscles in our bodies, we have to practice developing our hope muscle.
Sometimes life is not fair.
Crummy things happen.
We all may lose hope along the way.
Maybe for a moment, and maybe for a big chunk of our lives.
Seek out inspiration.
Look for role models.
Stop focusing on mistakes.
Forgive yourself.
Forgive others.
Cease the black and white thinking.
Cut the doubt and negative chatter.
Be in the “now.”
Build your resiliency.
And practice, practice, practice.
Discover your inner Anje Kopitar and find hope.
