By Paulo Coelho
According to the dictionary: a tendency of the spirit to consider something as probable; the second of the theological virtues; expectation; supposition; probability.
In the words of Jesus: Look at the wild birds. They do not sow or reap, or store their food in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more account than they? But which of you with all his worry can add a single hour to his life? Why should you worry about clothing? See how the wild flowers grow. They do not toil or spin, and yet I tell you, Solomon in all his splendor was never dressed like one of them. But if God so beautifully dresses the wild grass, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not so much more surely clothe you, you who have so little faith? (Matthew, 6: 26-30)
For the ancient Greeks: In one of the classic myths of the Creation, one of the gods, furious at the fact that Prometheus stole fire and in doing so gave men their independence, sends Pandora to marry her brother Epimetheus. Pandora brings along a box, which she is forbidden to open. However, just as happens to Eve in the Christian myth, her curiosity gets the better of her: she raises the lid to see what is inside, and at this moment all the troubles of the world spill out and spread all over the Earth. Only one thing remains inside: Hope, the only arm to combat the misfortune that has scattered throughout the world.
The four greatest hopes of humanity:
1] The coming of the Messiah (in the case of Christianism, the return of Christ; in the case of Islam and Judaism, the first coming); 2] the cure of cancer; 3] the discovery of extraterrestrial life; and 4] world peace. (Source: research on the most hoped-for newspaper headlines, 1996)
A real story: At the age of five, Glenn Cunninghan (1909-1988) suffered serious burns to the legs, and the doctors had no hopes for his recovery. They all felt that he was condemned to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.
Glenn Cunningham paid no attention to the doctors and got out of bed the following week.
“The doctors saw my legs but they did not see my heart. Now I’m going to run faster than anyone.”
In 1934 he beat the 1500-meter world record with the time of 4 minutes and 6 seconds. He was paid homage in Madison Square Garden as Athlete of the Century.
In a Hassidic story (Jewish tradition): At the end of the forty days of deluge, Noah emerged from the Ark. He disembarked full of hope, lit some incense, looked around him, and all he saw was destruction and death. Noah cried out:
“Lord Almighty, if you knew the future, why did you create man? Just for the pleasure of punishing him?”
A triple perfume rose to the sky: the incense, the perfume of Noah’s tears, and the aroma of his actions. Then came the answer:
“The prayers of a just man are always heard. Let me tell you why I did this: so that might understand your work. You and your descendants will use hope and will always be rebuilding a world that came from nothing. In that way we shall share the work and the consequences: now we are both responsible.”
The individual’s four greatest hopes:
1] Meeting the beloved one; 2] being free of financial problems; 3] being free of sickness; 4] immortality. (Source: Irving Wallace, The Book of Lists, 1977)
Hoping to be remembered: The great Caliph Alrum Al-Rachid decided to build a palace that would mark the grandeur of his reign. Besides the chosen terrain stood a shack. Al-Rachid asked his minister to convince the owner – an old weaver – to sell it to be demolished. The minister tried, but without any success. Back at the palace, it was suggested that they simply expel the old man from the site.
“No,” answered Al-Rachid. “It will become part of my legacy to my people. When they see the palace, they will say: he was great. And when they see the shack, they will say: he was just, because he respected the desire of others.”
(next Warrior of Light Online Love)
Welcome to Share with Friends – Free Texts for a Free Internet
Good luck on your journey my friend. It is now Nov 2009, since your post i pray that you have become more literate in the native language, i hope that people are able share wit you your gift of performing and I know your family are with you on your journey to greater success. Be calm, smile and enjoy every moment because nobody else can take the space you stand in. There is always reason.
I love you.
Ciertamente, estoy de acuerdo, en que la esperanza es un motor básico en esta vida. Yo la utilizo todo lo que puedo, creo además que es algo con lo que todos podemos contar si queremos, sólo que algunos se niegan a tenerla por miedo.
A mi por ejemplo me pasó lo siguiente. Me operaron de la vista, para quitrme la miopía y poder prescindir de las gafas. Fuí valiente al hacerlo, pero me habían dicho que era una operación fácil, sin problemas y que en dos días estabas recuperado. Yo me recuperé en un mes y tuve todo tipo de problemas. Y cuando pasó el mes me dí cuenta de que veía manchitas negras que se movían a lo largo de mi campo de visión. Así que aluciné, no sabía que me pasaba. Resulta que lo que tengo es miodisópsia ó “moscas volantes”. Esto es un rollo y los médicos dicen que no hay ninguna solución, pero yo me niego a pensar esto. Creo que porque ellos no la hayan descuboerto no significa que no exista y confío en que la medicina alternativa me la de ó que avance algo el tema.
Así que no paro de investigar todo lo nuevo que veo y de informarme bien donde se está estudiando esto, porque claro esto le afecta a muchas personas y te dicen que no es nada grave y listo. De hecho no es grave pero sí muy molesto y nada fácil de llevar en algunas ocasiones, ya que depende de la luz que haya, para que veas más o menos. No sólo hay que mirar el daño físico, sino también el psicológico, porque ya no puedes ver un paisaje claro más veces.
Así que yo tengo esperanza, claro que la tengo. mucha gente ha salido de cosas graves, gracias a la esperanza y nadie daba un duro por ellos.
Así que aunque nadie me apoye en mi aventura, porque todos dicen que lo acepte y que tire la toalla. yo nunca la tiraré porque siempre me quedaré con la esperanza. Para ellos soy una ilusa e inocente, para mí simplemente prefiero vivir con fé.
Besos
There ares days that I awake with the world in the palm of my hand. No mountains seem too high to climb, no rivers too wide to cross and no roads to long to travel. These are the days when the sun shines the brightest and my soul takes every opportunity to rejoice in the beauty and splendor of the present moment. These days are the days when the signs show up ever so clearly for me to acknowledge and express boisterous gratitude for; to laugh for no apparent reason as I walk these foreign city streets that have been calling me an entire lifetime, without even knowing how I arrived.
Then, there are days like today: days when the weight of the decisions I’ve made to pursue what I believe to be my personal legend, weigh heavily on my heart. I’m at least 4,000 miles away from all of those I love and hold close to my heart. The time zones between us create this invisible wall that seperates us and keeps us from truly partaking in each other’s lives. I open my eyes to another morning in a country where I’m an outsider, a country where I don’t yet speak the language or have any semblence of a normal life. It’s on these mornings that I have to search deep within myself and remember what it is I’m doing here.
Hope, determination, passion and creativity are all I’ve got. I find myself living in a flat that soon won’t be mine anymore. I’ve got less than 150 euros to my name and no gigs in sight to count on for income. I’ve found an artist visa I’d like to apply for, yet haven’t even been able to muster the energy to conceptualize a project the government here will deem worthy enough to approve me for. My recent relationship deteriorated before my very eyes a few months back and I find myself for the first time in my life completely alone. With a pivotal 25th birthday approaching and endless hours of silence and solitude, I seem to be going through intense internal shifts on some of the core beliefs I’ve had my entire life.
Hope. Hope is what gets me through moments like these. Hope is what I draw my strength from to move forward, to venture off into one more day on this path. Hope that all my dreams will be made manifest for all the sacrifices I’m continually making because I believe in my dreams. Hope, that these words will live on forever and resonate with the ones that are supposed to read them, feel them and hopefully, respond to.
Gracias Señor Coelho por todo lo que has escrito. Gracias por el amor, la esperanza y por recordarme que no puede dejar de soñar nunca!
Bizz desde Miami via Francia!