Hope Is...

"Hope" is the thing with feathers-

That perches in the soul-

And sings the tune without the words-

And never stops-at all-

And sweetest-in the Gale-is heard-

And sore must be the storm-

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm-

I've heard it in the chilliest land-

And on the strangest Sea-

Yet-never-in Extremity,

It asked a crumb-of me.

(Emily Dickinson)

That was one of the only poems I have ever memorized in my life and sometimes it comes to me in random moments. I imagine that little bird called "Hope" singing away, regardless of the circumstances. It's so easy to discount that bird's song, but I think it is such an important thing to feed. After love, I think hope is the most important force in the world.

In a recent episode of This is Us, a dinner party after the death of a loved one goes awry. To comfort Rebecca, Miguel tells a story about making wine. He said good wine is difficult to produce. It doesn't come every year, even when winemakers take precautions or work as hard as they possibly can to protect their crops. Sometimes, they toil away for no reward, but they keep doing it year after year though, hoping for a better outcome. It doesn't always come, but sometimes it does and it is amazing. It may have been a corny or overly-dramatic metaphor, but it rings true.

There are so many things in our worlds that we can't control. Things don't turn out right. We get sick or injured or depressed. Our car breaks down. We hate our jobs. There's a leak in the house. Someone we love dies. Those are dark holes. Those moments of darkness make it very hard easy to hear a constantly repeating soundtrack that say, "Why is this happening to me?" or "Why does everything go wrong?" or "Things will never get better." Try to listen for Hope. That bird's song can be faint, but it never stops at all.