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The necessity of hope~

Carrying the torch~

Like a wedding after a whirlwind romance, the inauguration of our 44th president captured the country's heart--and the world's: a ceremony of promise and hope.

All new relationships start with hope. To a country with a debilitated economy and fractured expectations nothing is needed more at the moment the torch is passed from one administration to another than this positive emotion.

Hope!

And change.

Things will change. Change is constant. Change comes from making choices, or not making them. Things will change. We hope it will be positive.

And here is where hope is tested.

When the emotional high fades, and real life resumes as it always does, differences that seemed easily surmounted stand out starkly. Change--what must change and how--is clarified. Disagreements arise. Ideologies diverge. Goodwill dissipates. Hope fades.

And without hope we lose ourselves.

Many have already stated what they believe are the most critical issues the president faces: global warming, terrorism, the economy, education . . . Yes, all of those and more are critical. But Barack Obama must keep alive the flame of hope he's fanned--the expectation that we can come together and overcome differences to move forward with positive change requires nothing less than hope.

United we stand.

Together we can.

I hope.
~~~~~
We gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. ~Barack Obama
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Comments

Janice Thomson said…
Hope alone can't solve a problem but it sure can inspire people to action. I'm delighted for our American friends that a fresh face, fresh ideas and yes, hope, is now before them. Time will tell if they are just hollow words or truly have meaning.
January 21, 2009 at 3:48 PM
RiverPoet said…
He's off to a great start today, taking steps to shut down Gitmo, one of our biggest black eyes as a civilized democracy. He also froze salaries for aides making over $100K a year and put some strict ethical guidelines in place for employees and lobbyists. He said that it was a campaign promise (to change the rules and backdoors of the lobbyists) he wanted to keep immediately.

I'm proud of the job he did on day one. I'm looking forward to more! For me, hope is strong. Hope is even stronger watching him keep his promises - from day one!

Peace - D
January 21, 2009 at 5:28 PM
Camroc Press Review said…
What lingers with me is that quote from scripture about putting away childish things....

Love the photo. How do you do that so well so often? You really must be paying attention.

Barry
January 22, 2009 at 10:34 AM
Pauline said…
"Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all"

As long as he continues to hum that tune, and as long as we citizens continue to supply the words, we will move forward in a positive way.
January 23, 2009 at 6:33 AM
Tere said…
I love that he tempers his hope and positivity with reality. Even in his speech.

Very good points and I love the photo.
January 23, 2009 at 11:25 AM
Wanda said…
I feel Janice has spoken my heart too.

I hope!
January 23, 2009 at 8:21 PM
Bob Sanchez said…
Of course we can change for the better; we will always have room for improvement, human beings that we are. After four or eight years of this administration, we might choose change once again. Who knows? We will always need these mid-course corrections.
January 23, 2009 at 9:21 PM
Michelle said…
It is good to have many people with the hope of better things to come. Without people being united failure is inevitable. It's true, hope does fade. I guess we just have to see what happens after the honeymoon phase.

By the way - GREAT ADVISE about running that marathon! It gives me hope! In 16 weeks I will NEVER have to run again!
January 25, 2009 at 5:34 PM
Anonymous said…
Hope is a wonderful thing - it is part of the human spirit. I was saddened to read of your friend's loss in a previous post Ruth.With all of the things you've posted, life moves on regardless, though for some it surely must feel it stands still at times. I have an award for you to collect if you'd like to come over to Textilosophy to collect it, in recognition of your thoughtful posts.In whatever context, we all hope for better days.
January 27, 2009 at 5:38 AM
Alice Folkart said…
Ruth - I realized that I still had a link to your blog on my G-mail home page and dipped in. I'm so glad that I did - YOUR PHOTOGRAPHS are more than stunning, more than beautiful, more than pizza and ice cream, more even than sleeping cats - you are a lens genius. I have a couple of friends who style themselves 'Photographers' with a capital 'Ph!' But their work leaves me cold. Yours does not. You have the eye and the heart and, apparently, the technique to get the picture that will touch the heart and soul of the viewer (in other words, me!). Oh, get them as seen as you can. They are gems. Your waterscapes of mirror waters are so calm, yet so strong. And your focused thing-scapes, I'm thinking of the fences - the red fence (there are two) and that curved wooden fence with the shadow - and the barbed wire which is incidental to 'the lady and the tramp' - all special. But, my favorite, maybe because it's the kind of scene that is out of my reach here, is 'No Business like . . .' The image, the content, the comment all speak to me.

Your photographs are like music, although I'd have to think a bit to tell you why.

Anyway, you know that photography takes a lot of kanoodling time, time to wander and look and see and think, don't ever feel rushed. Even if you're peeling potatoes, with your sensibility, you are working on something (not the potatoes, although they would be nice mashed with lots of butter and salt and . . .).

Alice
February 17, 2009 at 6:45 PM
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