i recognize in that a primary coping strategy for my life is to be hopeful. and dear god, the moments when that doesn’t work, i am filled with stomach swirling despair.
so, needless to say, this quote brought me strength and joy:
An optimist isn’t necessarily a blithe, sappy whistler in the dark. To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. If we remember those times and places where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us energy to act and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.
Howard Zinn
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Yes!
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I love Howard Zinn. Do you know who he was? He died this year, but he wrote many controversial books on American History. I love his perspective, and while he made no excuses for the horrors our country’s leaders have inflicted on others, he was terribly optimistic about the potential of the US. Critics called him unpatriotic, but he was that and more.
On another note, I agree with you here. I can not be bubbly and super-excited about this and that. My hopefulness tends to be suspicious, but I do know that good times are ahead of me, waiting. And good times are ahead of us in the world, too.
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Your post made me think of “The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective” by Richard Rohr? I think it is a book you would enjoy reading, if you haven’t already. I have a copy of it, if you want to borrow it. :)
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oh i have read parts of that book! but it’s been awhile. i would love to borrow it.
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agreed.
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LOVE this quote, friend. thank you.
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Can you add a tune to this and share it with me as a theme song please? Thanks.
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