1999-2019: Celebrating 20 Years of Ripples!
Ripples #1040: The Dance of Optimism!
Apr 29, 2019
PEBBLE
I find it a kind of reassuring thought, in these morose times, that at any given moment a sizable portion of the human race is dancing.
-Walt Anderson, shared by Claire at Central Michigan University
BOULDER
To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places — and there are so many — where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.
-Howard Zinn, shared by Pidge in Pacifica, CA
PONDER
You likely know some folks who are so pessimistic that they could spend more time complaining about the taxes they’d have to pay on their lottery winnings than daydreaming how they would spend the balance.
Hopefully you also get to spend a decent amount of time with a few people who are good at seeing the upside and can joyfully anticipate the next sunny day even when the rain is pouring down. I’m not talking about those who paint clown-like artificial smiles on their face and grit their way through every situation, their faces strained with tension. No, I’m talking about the folks who take deep breaths, relish small pleasures and whose arrival consistently improves your mood (or at least makes a tough day a tad more tolerable).
Do me a favor and not only enjoy their presence in your life this week, but maybe also take a moment to THANK them for being a consistent source of light for you and the others they cross paths with. Then, if you have a few ounces of energy to spare, spend a little time wondering how things might change for you and those you encounter if you bumped up your courageous optimism a notch or three.
Be one of the many souls who are dancing this week, celebrating all the good stuff that exists in the world while harnessing the energy to tackle the challenges that need to be addressed so we can keep moving forward.
Peace,
Paul
The Ripples Guy
