PEBBLE
The world is in a bad state, but everything will become still worse unless each of us does our best.
-Viktor Frankl, shared by Matt in Philadelphia, PA
BOULDER
If the world is to be healed through human efforts,
I am convinced it will be by ordinary people,
people whose love for this life is even greater than their fear.
~Joanna Macy, shared by Tom in Ohio via Pass It On
PONDER
A few weeks ago the above Joanna Macy quote landed in my inbox and I knew I wanted to share it with you here. The process of verifying the quote led me to a book she co-wrote (and recently revised) called Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in with Unexpected Resilience & Creative Power.
Reading the book over the last few weeks inspired me in ways I didn’t realize I needed. I was especially struck by the distinction it made between hope as a noun and hope as a verb. If passive hope is about wanting something and waiting for it to happen, active hope is about believing in something and working to make it happen.
In the past I’ve been tempted to think of fear and frustration as dangerous to hope since they can lead us into despair and inaction. Active Hope takes a different path, inviting us to courageously face our fears and frustrations. With intention and practice we can leverage their capacity to build energy, sustain our passion, and keep us looking forward and also moving forward.
If we were each willing to bring forth a little more curiosity and just a bit more courage, I’m convinced we can come together and more effectively address some of the bigger challenges facing our world these days. Let’s start small, keeping our eyes and ears open this week for ordinary opportunities to spread compassion and kindness. A little extra patience and a bit more grace can help us strengthen our love, disarm our fears, and move us toward Healing the World.