Hope

Religion provides the symbols and stories that bring spirituality to life. This particular symbol - the candle of hope - offers us the opportunity to ponder that about which we are hopeful and, on the flip-side, that about which we are not hopeful.

If you know me, you'll know that I have a two-track mind: the environment and social justice. Okay, there's a bit more, but the rest is really just permutations of those two.

My first reaction to "hope", then, is that I am hopeful that we will solve our environmental challenges within my lifetime. I am also hopeful that every Calgarian will have a place to call home - within the next decade. Hearing people like Barack Obama talk about plans to take on climate change or people like Tim Richter right here in Calgary talk about the end of homelessness in our city brings me great hope.

But hope, to me, is much more than sitting and listening to the solutions that others are offering. Hope isn't about sitting and hoping...hope is about doing. I do my best to hope with my feet. When I lose hope - which I sometimes do - it's often because I feel so powerless. But my hope inevitably returns.

My hope returns when I think about Zambians working tirelessly to help their neighbour.

My hope returns when I see unsuspected leaders popping up in our community to change situations that just aren't as they ought to be. (Talk to me after if you think this should be you)

My hope returns when I see people rethinking Christmas, searching for meaning in the stories - rather than searching for the best deal in the malls.

Hope moves against the flow. Hope is a salmon - maybe we can use that symbol next year(?). Most of the time, the easiest choice is to just give up. I derive great hope in knowing that Jesus, whose birth we eagerly await to celebrate, was tempted to give up too. But instead of throwing his hands in the air, he waged constantly for heaven here on earth.

In this season that represents despair for so many among us, feel hope that things will be as they ought to be. And more importantly, live your hope too.