Hope

it’s the only solace

More than our pursuit of happiness, we want to know what future holds for us. Of course we don’t want to spoil all the surprises. We do want the jolt from apprehension. But our millennium old experiences made us accept, grudgingly, that we can never quite figure out this dilemma: to know about the unseen episodes of our life and be surprised at the same time when we reach there. So only with assumptions we begin a process to create our so called comfortable future. During this tenure we strike at what we perceive — sometime mistakenly — as threat. This is our “fight or flight” instinct. Sometime we box ourselves in a cocoon and don’t recognize even our own image while inside it. Other times we draw lines to separate us, to avoid others or to numb pains from sorrows. We ignore our blessings and overlook what could have been best in our interest. We simply tarnish our innocence.

There are many antidote to cure these blemishes from our psyche. One clever tool is often overlooked by many. You may very well call it an impurity — something similar gold jewelers must use when they make ornaments and to give them a solid structure. Yes; we need to add imperfection even for something that is made out of pure gold! This tool, however, appear as a sign of self-delusion to many. But if we use it wisely and faithfully then our life which is filled with stumbles over unforeseen events become little more endurable. The tool is “hope”. We ought to mend our heart with it and must believe, against all odds that someday our pain will soothe away by good fortune just like monsoon rain rinses dirt and debris. Even if our relief is brief, “hope” is the only solace we can summon at our will; really!