It's So Delicate, the Light
Yet we continue
It’s so delicate, the light. And there’s so little of it. The dark is huge. Just delicate needles, the light, in an endless night. And it has such a long way to go through such desolate space. So let’s be gentle with it. Cherish it. So it will come again in the morning. We hope. ~Rolf Jacobsen
Dear Notes on Hope readers,
The past 24 hours have been profoundly sad. I will have more thoughts to share over the weekend on how we move forward. But, for now, I wanted to offer a few points of grounding.
First, as frightening as the future feels right now, I remain unwavering in the message I sent on Sunday, particularly in the importance of continuing, even when it’s hard and the path feels uncertain:
“The world is never wholly won or wholly lost, and the moment we think it is we stop moving forward, whether because we’ve declared victory or resigned ourselves to defeat. We still need to continue no matter what, and I find strength, not exhaustion, in this. I think it is the very definition and the very active function of hope.
As Maya Angelou described, this capacity for continuing is where “the nobleness of the human spirit” abides—in our ability and our commitment to rise and rise and rise again, whether we have fear or joy in our hearts, not because we are naive, but because we recognize how essential it is to keep going when the wind is at our back and when the wind is pushing us back.”
I am also thinking tonight of James Baldwin’s words, which I began this endeavor in hope with five months ago, and continue to hold close to my heart:
“I never have been in despair about the world. Enraged. I’ve been enraged by the world, but never despair. I cannot afford despair…you can’t tell the children that there is no hope.”
As a parent and a teacher, I feel these words deeply. They require our ongoing commitment and vigilance though, because despair can easily catch hold of us in dark times. We owe it to our children and to each other to find the capacity within ourselves to continue to do the hard work of reaching for hope, instead of giving into despair, and of fighting for a better future. History is full of examples of progress hard won, even after devastating setbacks, so I know it is within our power to rise to this moment, as others have risen before us.
With love and continued hope,
Alicia
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History tells us, there is always hope. That's why we have children.