A Bright Future of Hope and Opportunity!

Okay, I don’t know about all y’all, but I’m kind of weary, worn out and tired! Not so much physically, but mentally, and emotionally. Here’s the deal.

First, it’s this presidential campaign. Will it ever end? I mean, really, the stumping, rhetoric, accusations, and discussion feel perpetual. And for now, they are short on substance, and long on emotional manipulation. I’ve always prided myself on being relatively immune to the manipulation aspect, but, for some reason, this time around it is really abrasive. I’m not even talking about the actual issues of either campaign, it’s mood and methods. We can devote another post to the candidates’ issues, but not today.

The next thing I can consciously put my finger on is the frenzy about world energy and pending global environmental collapse due to carbon levels. Yes, oil prices are high; yes, we need to conserve resources; yes, we are experiencing dramatic increases in food prices! All these are happening, but I don’t get the panic and despair mentality. It doesn’t resolve anything to wander around the world bemoaning our circumstances, and complaining when others don’t bemoan with us. It only adds to fear, despair, and eventually apathy. When people feel helpless often the only way to deal with it is to ignore it. It also makes us more willing to accept just about anything that looks like an attempt at a solution; this can lead to poor and ill-advised actions in the long-term view!

What is the solution? Perhaps, I’m not qualified to say with certainty, yet I have a few thoughts about it. When people are presented with a tough problem to solve, they are inclined to attack it with energy, if they believe there is some type of reward upon defeating the obstacle. Hope! We need to recognize our situation, but also look back and see that we have solved many tough, challenging problems already, and are just as smart and capable (perhaps more so) to do it now. The world and people are resilient! Look at the monumental achievements throughout history. I’m not talking Pollyanna, here, but a realistic, eyes open optimistic enthusiasm to tackle challenges with energy, drive, and balance--avoiding, panic, despair, and desperation. This will require cooperation, moderation, and even some realistic compromise from the extreme views on all sides.

Our nation was founded on the concept that given an opportunity to control their destiny, people will most often achieve greatness. Many times they will surpass expectations. We need to regain that optimism for opportunity, and responsibility for our actions—good or bad! Blaming our neighbor, the church, or the government, shifts our energy away from the individual, and drives away creativity and determination. Allowing ourselves to be told we are not responsible for our actions, because somewhere in our past—near or very distant—some injustice was inflicted on us or our family, makes us exempt from tapping into the personal hope and energy that can take us away from the negative situation.

Of course, I believe at some point along this path, we cannot have a complete hope, until we acknowledge God in our sojourn here on earth. All things are His, and he can help us solve problems we create for ourselves, but He generally won’t act unless we request it!