Skip to main content

UnHopeful

 


UnHopeful

I awoke this morning with the word ‘unhopeful’ coming through my mind, then my lips. As I have been taking this graduate writing course, I’ve learned that there are words that can be in literature that are not yet in the dictionary. Or would have been looked down upon as being used, such as undivorced, instead of remarried.

After having this literary happening upon waking this morning; I expressed out loud to myself, “I wonder if unhopeful is a word?” Then thought either way it’s unique. And pray tell, why did that word come through me upon waking this morning? And of course, like a bad song from the 1980’s stuck in one’s head—here it lay persistent of it’s demand that I write about it, or else it would haunt me forever.

The next thought with the unused word by me was, the hurricane threatening Florida once again—only this time I knew it was ever more deadly than the one just nine days prior. This coupled with the fact that there were still people missing in the three states hit the hardest from Hurricane Helene, a little more than a week ago. Add that in with our political climate especially in those states already hit and hurting from Helene. Yet, we’ve been here before as a nation. This truly is not a new situation. It’s an old new situation.  Its old but reported differently. And it is appearing as unhopeful.

In writing something to a judge, a piece of legislation or proposal to a CEO or CFO of a corporation, best practices show that to attract immediate interest—the presenter must demonstrate the new idea with the old idea. The reasoning behind this is to bring familiarity to the table, as it will help to gain interest in that proposal. Connectivity is a human desire.

Connectivity to commonality is where fear abates. And the unhopeful situation may appear inevitable; however, after the waters recede and the dust settles there will be hope in the unhopeful. How it arrives will be how individuals of our nation react. There will be long stretches of rebuilding, resituating and fatigue. Yet, if we look a few weeks ahead, there will be new jobs, more job opportunities, more volunteers will be needed, and this country will be better for it. It’s the sun that shines behind the clouds of tragedy.

In the unhopeful moments when we’ve lost our way being diverted by the destroyers of democracy, we will be given a chance to rectify our unwanted, undesired cacophony of incivility. Perchance, we take these moments of unsteadiness, then steady ourselves quietly within our own souls. Individual introspection is essential to get us through, because it is a US thing.---Jody-Lynn Reicher

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

2023 Holiday Letter from the Reicher's

Well, I didn't think I'd be doing a Holiday Letter this year, but here goes... The Spirit of Norm is in the air. As the wind whips with minus a true snowstorm.  In hopes the Farmers Almanac was correct, I pray to the snow gods. Rain ensued the month of December thus far. We have nearly tripled the amount of rainfall usual for December in New Jersey. And I've witnessed its treachery. Storms such as these hit us hardest in July. Then remained fairly intense through til about early October.  Our daughters are doing well, Thank God.  Their Dad would be proud of them. Our oldest Sarah, now a Junior at UCLA pursuing her degree in Chemical Engineering. She's digging the whole California scene. Which I thought it was for her. She's had some good traveling on her off times from school. For her March 2023 week off, she drove her and a few friends out to Lake Tahoe and went downhill skiing for a first in nearly 5 years. She had to rent the ski equipment.  Funny enough when ...

She's Not Exactly Betty White

She? Yes, she is not exactly Betty White. Nibbles is cute and funny, though. She's one of our two bunnies now nearing 100 years old. She at times appears to need a wheeled walker absolutely, with tennis balls. But instead, I've now spotted her, little rugs covering our living room to dining room floors. Not too many of them, for she would think she was close to a litter box and then there'd be a big mess.  Right now, I'm working mostly remotely. This allows for me to check on her four times a day. Too, I've made my office temporarily in our dining room.  And thank God for all that. Because I have to make certain her right leg that can no longer function as part of her hopping mechanics to get around, does not get hung up on the side of the litter box. I have to clean her hay excursions, she cannot always control her hay poops, never mind her bladder. That's where my excessive laundry loads have headed. No big deal. I barely use the dryer. I have a drying rack a...

Balloons Are Amazing

Especially the ones that have helium in them. Balloons for some reason seem to be a sign of happiness. I remember as a child when our family would go to the annual Fireman’s Picnic near Labor Day weekend. It was an annual event put on by the volunteer fire department my dad belonged to. I can’t remember what I loved the most about it. Yet, I could say the helium balloons were in the top three items at that celebration of sorts for me. The hamburgers were a gift from God. Not the kind of food I saw regularly, because it was once a year. I can’t recall any other time I’d eaten a hamburger at home. We could afford chicken. We’d eaten squirrel, which had actually been shot by one of my dad’s friends when firing of what I believe was a BeeBee gun. And venison was had when one of my dad’s friends hit a deer with his late 1960’s early 1970’s suburban vehicle in Maine, totaling it of course. Too, for a few summers we’d received massive amounts of blue fish for free. It’s still my favorite food...