Hanging on to Hope
From Acknowledgement to Action
As the year 2022 draws to a close and a new year approaches, let’s pause to consider the many blessings that we experience in spite of all the turmoil and adversity we may be facing in our individual lives and in the world around us.
Chaos appears to be the order of the day… but thankfully we can look within ourselves to help calm our troubled souls and we can gain strength, confidence, and comfort from the support of family, friends, and others to help guide us through troubled waters.
The new year will be upon us in a matter of days and one thing is certain as we drive forward into 2023 …. Changes will occur. They may be political, economic, social, or spiritual. But change will happen. Our cartoon friends, Simon and Specs were discussing the changes they would like to see in the new year and had this to say about at least one of them…..
It doesn’t matter which mode of transportation we take to head toward the new year. And our cartoon friends will be helping us in our journey. Hope (the cat), and Harry (the dog) have been joined by a new friend of theirs … “Oliver, the Office Supply Owl,” (another cartoon character I created several years ago). Together they are reviewing the best mode of transportation to take into the new year so that they can successfully navigate the many challenges and obstacles that they will encounter on the road to the new year. (Oliver is a well-known expert in Supply Chain activities and procedures). See below.
Preparing for the Future
As an added feature for this blog posting, Hope, the Puppy, and Oliver Owl have decided to combine together to provide us with a few “Driving Lessons for Life” as noted below…
Preparing for the Future
One of the actions we can take to prepare for the future is to review and re-examine our purposes in life and the passions which support those purposes.
I recently reviewed and re-examined my own purpose for the rest of my life here on earth. Here is what I discovered in the process…My purpose is
“To bring Light and Hope to the dark corners of the world and shine through the shadows.”
I would encourage you to set aside some time in the future to re-evaluate your own life as well. The time spent is well worth it.
Thankfully, there are many resources available to help us in this endeavor. Applicable Resources which you may want to consider regarding discovering or rediscovering your own purpose and passions in life are included on both the Punchlines page and the Resources pages.
Web page Updates
Updates for 4th Quarter, 2022 have been included on the following “Hanging on to Hope” web pages:
- Resources
- Punchlines
The Punchlines page contains a new section entitled “On Living with Purpose & Passion” which we will be updating in the future and specifically addressing in more detail in upcoming blog postings.
The Punchlines page also continues to include the subsection on “Uplifting Expressions.” This month’s poem was written in the 1800’s by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and is also cited below. This particular excerpt was taken from a book published in 1900 by The Lovell Company.
Uplifting Expressions
A Psalm of Life
“Tell me not, in mournful numbers,
‘Life is but an empty dream!’
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.
Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
‘Dust thou art, to dust returnest,’
Was not spoken of the soul.
Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Finds us farther than to-day.
Art is long, and Time is fleeting,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.
In the world’s broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!
Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,–act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o’erhead!
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing
Learn to labor and to wait.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
(1807-1882)
From Longfellow, Henry W. (1900). A Psalm of Life. The Lovell Company. New York NY.
As we close this blog today, keep in mind that:
A new year is coming . . .
As it always does.
Prepare for it and Drive Forward!
And remember…
Adversity in life is NOT optional, but your response to it is!
Hang on to Hope!
Gregory Charles Reynolds
Hanging on to Hope! 