Hope can carry you a long way

By Cathy McCarthy

If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.

— Martin Luther King

What is hope? It is that feeling when you have not really studied for your exams but you have the hope that you might just pass. It is that feeling all will be okay.

People often say that there is always tomorrow, a new day when things will turn out better. Hope is the feeling that we usually get when something bad happens, that tells us that there will be light at the end of the tunnel.

Hope is believing that it is not the end and that you have people to support you. Hope is that belief that as bad as things are, there will be a new beginning. Hope is the key to unlock the belief that there is a future.

Hope keeps the light of our dreams alive. It is an act of surrender, but not one of giving up.  

It says, “I still want to believe that what I hope for is possible but I’m not feeling strong enough today to believe this. So I am handing it over to hope.”

Does hope exist? I think it does exist and I believe that the reason why people trust in hope is that in times of pain and hardship, when life can be unbearable, hope is the one thing that we can hold on to. Hopes gives us the strength to continue living. Hope is a feeling deep inside us.  

To get through the toughest journey, we all need hope. Hope makes us believe in impossibilities. If everyone turns their back on us, hope will not. Hope will remain with us as long as we believe in it.

Many people will wake up today and realise that the world they knew has become a different place. Their life may have changed through illness, loss of employment, a broken relationship.  

 

 

 

There are many challenges facing people, some we are completely unaware of.  We all need hope.  Hope is the belief in a future.  

Without hope, it would be extremely difficult to journey through adversity. How would we go on if we had no hope?  

How would we be able to get up in the morning and be motivated to do anything? Life would have no direction, no value or meaning.  

Hope is the vessel that carries a person through their struggle. Hope is that little word that wills us to keep going.
Hope in Adversity.

Without hope, there would be no motivation or strength of will to withstand adversity. There would be no long term goals, no direction, no comfort, no value or meaning. Hope is the vessel that carries a person through life.

Hope is present in everyone. In everything we do, we hope for the best. We yearn, we dream, we desire. And most of the time, even though we have to face reality, we can still have time for wishful thinking and connect it with the real things that are happening right now.

Hope is subjective. If you asked two people what is their understanding of hope, they will more than likely give two different answers.  

We define hope and recall a time when we have experienced its connection and meaning in our own lives. We hope for the best. We hope for more blessings. We hope to be happy.

 

 

Everyone has their hopes and dreams.

Throughout our lives there are instances when we cannot achieve what we want, no matter what we do at a particular moment. Yet we yearn for it. The thing that makes it bearable is the hope within us that at some future time we will have the power and ability to achieve it.  

Hope is that little word that keeps the dream alive. When you can keep your hopes up, it can make the most unrealistic dream seem possible.  

I read recently “There is no such word as impossible, the word is saying, I’m possible.”

I love hope and I thank it for carrying me through some difficult times in my life.

What are the health benefits of being hopeful?

The Mayo Clinic recently reported on the correlation between hopeful thinking and stress management. Researchers found that hopeful thinkers “cope better with stressful situations, which reduces the harmful effects of stress on (the) body”.

Hopeful thinkers experienced better general health in the form of longer life spans and lower rates of cardiovascular disease, as well as greater achievement, increased determination, and lower rates of depression.

How can one develop a hopeful attitude?

The Mayo Clinic proposes that people who view the glass as half-empty can take comfort that with time and practice, a new habit of hopeful thinking can take shape.  They recommend the following:

• Check your inner voice periodically throughout the day. If thoughts are mainly negative, try to put a positive spin on the situation. Try not to take yourself too seriously. There are plenty of humorous situations in everyday events even in difficult times. Go ahead and laugh.
• Exercise at least three days a week. Exercise releases endorphins in the body that help to positively affect mood and reduce stress.
• Surround yourself with positive, supportive, dependable people that give helpful advice and feedback. Negative people tend to deplete hopeful energy from others.
• Be gentle with yourself. Some days will be more difficult than others, but do not say anything to yourself that you would not say to anyone else.
• Ultimately, embracing today with hope can generate many health benefits tomorrow.

Why do such emotions as hope, optimism, and a positive outlook seem to benefit health? One professor of neurology suggests, “It feels good to be happy and hopeful. It’s an enjoyable state that produces very little stress, and the body thrives in those conditions. It’s one more thing that people can do for themselves to try to stay healthy.”

In times that we cannot find solutions to our problems, in times that we think it is the end, hope gives us the courage to face the reality and the hope that maybe, just maybe, over that distant hill, there is a new beginning.

Hope is what we need in order to live, in order to love and in order to pursue our goals.

Just as man cannot live

without dreams,

he cannot live without hope.

If dreams reflect the past

Hope summons the future

Elie Wiesel