Welcome to Perspectives!

On Courage and Hope

It is only when we have the courage to face things exactly as they are, without any self-deception or illusion, that a light will develop out of events by which the path to success may be recognized.-       I Ching, Hexagram 5

A frontier is never a place; it is a time and a way of life.

–       Hal Borland

When I was growing up, my abiding fantasy was that of being a pioneer, riding in a Conestoga wagon, living in a log cabin, facing whatever hardships might come my way. As we face uncertainty and the frontiers of today, I find myself wondering about the courage I will personally need to invoke.  I am a happy extrovert, thriving amid friendly jostling and hugging.  I also have lived alone for over twenty years.  I have learned to love the time with myself and have grown to value and depend upon the reflection that affords me.   

It didn’t always feel easy to live into what it meant to live with myself rather than simply by myself.  I found my attitude determined whether I would label a given situation as either solitude or loneliness.  For me, that’s where my hope enters in.  Every moment offers an opportunity.  

These days my condo building is ghostly silent.  All social events and even the exercise room are shut down, to good and important purpose.  I support that.  Through technology I have had daily contact with my daughter and family and a wide range of friends, and FaceTime is a huge gift that lets me touch them with my eyes. 

Honestly, for the first time today it somehow feels hard.  And, it’s hard to even acknowledge that.  My strong independence, which I usually find as an asset, calls for me to develop some other muscles for the situation at hand. 

·      What is the “light” I’m now seeing?  What am I paying attention to?

·      What am I learning about myself?  

·      How might my way of life in the future be informed by my current experience? I hope you and your loved ones are safe and well.