Post Meridiem

6:10

Monday

It seems we are trying very hard to destroy ourselves. And according to the news, we're doing a damn good job of it. Yes, more than ever, we're killing ourselves at every turn, on every field. It's disheartening. Tragic. Ground-breaking and record smashing in the worst way. Despite all of this, I'd like you to indulge my naiveté for a moment: it will get better. We can, and will, do better.

( We are not lost

yet. Do not

give up

on

us

yet. )

Once, I wrote that hope was a curse. Something that hurts more than helps. I think it was quite a luxury to be able to say that we could, or should, discard hope as something useless. Once, I wrote that change was needed, of course, but it was always something that was just pushed off for later.

(

Once, I wrote myself into

oblivion, living for

the end.

)

But now, I think that hope is what we need, isn't it? Forgive the cliche, but I think that even if we have nothing else, we have hope. The world is a frightening place right now and where there is fear, there is hope.

It is so human to know the odds and what they mean, and still bet against them. It is so painfully human to be terrified of what lies at the end of the tunnel, yet continue marching on anyway. It is so painfully human to hope.

I was wrong: hope is not something that harms, it is something that unifies. It is powerful and motivating and strong. And more than ever, I think what we need is to be unified and strong and motivated. So please, indulge me, and have hope. Change is more than something to be used in teenage poetry. And it is more than a conversation starter. It is more than fodder for motivational speeches.

So please, one final time, indulge my naiveté and walk on with hope and strength.