We The People ARE The Heartbeat Of Hope
Last night I was watching “Finding Your Roots” with host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. I absorbed the word ‘hope’ with each ancestral story. The family roots of three featured guests were researched and compiled by genealogists. Each guest was presented with a “book of life” – each page filled with their ancestry. The immigrants who came from around the world to find a better life here in the United States carried hope in their hearts and souls as a guiding light. They came in search of peace and prosperity. This heartbeat alive within carried them through in the most challenging of times. It took extreme courage, and for many, desperation/determination to uproot themselves and embark on an unknown journey. Arrival in the U.S. traded old struggles (in most cases, for new ones) with what appeared to be a brighter future.
This brings to mind what is going on currently in the world you and I live in. I see many people struggling, skittish, confused, frustrated, yet hopeful for a better future. Politics have torn people apart to the very core. Racial issues are as unresolved as ever. The weather patterns are unpredictable. People are dying of diseases at an unprecedented rate. Each generation being born wants to forge different paths than the previous generations. Our world is changing rapidly, much of it due to modern technology. I could go on listing disparities tearing people and the fiber of life apart, but at the same time, these same things can bring us together. Why? Because we the people ARE the heartbeat of hope.
“Out of difficulties grow miracles.” – Jean de la Bruyère
Hope is a beautiful thing. It is the catalyst for action – the fuel that drives dreams. Without hope we have nothing to drive us forward. Every generation needs their own form of hope, (predicated on what is happening at that time for that generation) so they are not running off the fumes of the generations that came before them. We need more tolerance. Think about it, the generations before us thought each ‘new’ generation was going to hell in a hand-basket.
Until we find common ground, there will be no change. This has always been the conundrum kept alive by those who want to keep the status quo. We The People – it’s up to us to come together to create a collective heartbeat of change. Division and separation has not served the people. It has served those in power. Until we truly wake up to what we have created and take action, the outer world will never be at peace.
I can add a long list here of positive ways to create change, but haven’t we heard it all, read the books, been to the seminars, watched shows/movies, and listened to songs inspiring us to be the change we hope to see? My greatest wish is that I could give you a solution. The best we can do is to carry the heartbeat of hope deep in our hearts, and be the best person we can be. It’s an inside job.
If I can offer one suggestion, it would be this, take the time to lift someone up daily. Share a smile, an act of kindness, support a person who is struggling in some way, listen with patience and offer an encouraging word. Each of these acts make a difference. YOU are the heartbeat of hope.
This piece on hope is just what we all need. It is beautifully written and very heartfelt. Thank you so much for sharing this with all your readers
Hope speaks to my heart – I had a wonderful Mom growing up who encouraged me to live my best life and to follow my dreams. Writing is my way of giving back. XO
Beautiful words, Debra. Hope is an inside job. As long as we hold onto hope, there is a chance for change and renewal. People often run to books and seminars for answers. That is why I stopped long ago giving answers but rather showing others the tools to unearth their own possibilities. Thanks Debra for spreading hope. xx
You are speaking my language Lisa – showing others the tools to unearth their own possibilities, also being a ‘living example’ sets a shining example, and shows we walk our talk. xx
Hope keeps us going.
Hope for a better world, better living conditions for all, better everything..
This hope in our hearts must be fanned and kept alive. Thank you for sharing Debra.
You hit the nail on the head Leila. Fanning the flames of hope keeps it alive in our hearts and souls. 🙂
Bravo! This is in line with my own blog post today on the 50th anniversary of 1969, the year that fueled a generation. Our work is not done here, and I don’t think it ever will be as that is not part of the human condition, or so it seems. Yet each one of us can “be the change” in oh, so many little ways every day.
We are like minded and love hearted Barb! No, our work is far from done here, but everything we do affects future generations and the human condition.
My heart was lit on fire with these words, Debra: “We The People – it’s up to us to come together to create a collective heartbeat of change. Division and separation has not served the people. It has served those in power. Until we truly wake up to what we have created and take action, the outer world will never be at peace.” There is work to be done. And we are the ones to do it—there is nobody coming to save us. Except for us.
Thank you Laurie for your heartfelt comment. Just the words, “We The People” are powerful, and I agree – no one is coming to save us. It’s up to us individually and collectively.
What a special post Debra! And so needed at this time. I love your statements that “Hope is the catalyst for action – the fuel that drives our dreams” and your call to action that “It is up to us to come together to create a collective heartbeat of change.” Thanks for the reminder that each of us in our own ways can cultivate hope and make the world a better place by our daily actions and interactions with others.
Pamela, thank you for your comment…I love that statement as well. Hope is VIP at this time and we can pay it forward by spreading the word.
Hope definitely is the catalyst for action, we can definitely all make a change & make a difference in this world
Affirmative Heather!
Beautiful thought provoking post, Debra. My mantra during difficult times is ‘Hope Floats’ and I repeat it to inspire me to take action. We have a beautiful phrase in Urdu about hope which loosely translated to mean the World runs on Hope. I work at making a difference each day with at least one random act of kindness.
What a beautiful mantra Vatsala. I truly believe the world runs on hope. Your acts of kindness go far in making a difference. Blessings to you!
As I travel, I have noticed that the groceries stores are where I see people connect with others most genuinely. Maybe it’s odd to read, but when I go to a place of business, the person before me is “on” and behaving to the best of their customer service skills. Often they are hiding what they really feel, restricted from saying what they really want to dish out, or burring the stress of just getting yelled at by a co-worker, boss or customer. At the grocery store, people are able to relax and connect with each other just as they are. It reminds me that people all want peace, love and joy. And, that people are the heartbeat of hope.
This is a great article, Debra.
You bring up a great point Cindy – I hadn’t thought about this, but mulling it over, you are right. The defenses are down and food and shopping seem to connect people – a common bond of sorts. At the end of the day, we all want love, peace and joy.
I had noticed it about a month ago, but the depth of the realization came forth as I started to respond to your post. I’m rarely in the same grocery store more than once or twice as I travel this winter. People are people. And, as you wrote, we all want love, peace and joy.
I started hearing Bob Dylan’s lyrics as I read your post, Debra. “Come Mothers and Fathers throughout the land, and don’t criticize what you can’t understand,
Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command. Your old road is rapidly, agin’. Please get out of the new one if you can’t lend your hand…
For the times they are a-changin’.” We the people always make the difference. <3
I love your comment Kathleen. I have been a Bob Dylan fan all my life. The times – they truly are a-changin! We the people are the heartbeat of hope – that has never changed.