Living in Hope

by Ross A. Aalgaard, MSW, LGSW

612.332.7743 ext. 235
raalgaard@wpc-mpls.org

I don't always see the world's brightness; its darkness can easily overcome me. The year that has ended was a tough one. It left a lot of people longing for some hope. Maybe the New Year will be better than the last. A friend and colleague of mine one day wrote this for her Facebook status: "[she] thinks that hope is hard to find when you feel like you've lost it." That's why it is so important to maintain hope, find hope, or seek out help if you believe you've completely lost it. In Viktor Frankl's writings he communicates how mental and physical wellbeing is closely connected: Those who know how close the connection is between the state of mind of a man-his courage and hope, or lack of them-and the state of immunity of his body will understand that the sudden loss of hope and courage can have a deadly effect. Frankl describes his personal experience of seeing individual hope destroyed: The prisoner who had lost faith in the future - his future - was doomed. With his loss of belief in the future, he also lost his spiritual hold; he let himself decline and became subject to mental and physical decay. Usually this happened quite suddenly, in the form of a crisis, the symptoms of which were familiar to the experienced camp inmate. We all feared this moment - not for ourselves, which would have been pointless, but for our friends.

Now that the calendar has moved us into 2010, I trust you will have a renewed sense of hope. With hope, your well-being is enhanced. Having hope will strengthen you as you experience the routines and trials of life. Hope can carry you through some very rough situations and magnify your pleasures.

It's easy for me to encourage you to possess hope, but just turning our calendars to a new year doesn't automatically change our circumstances or give us anything to "hope in." For me I turn to that which is greater than me. I look for what scholar Marcus Borg calls "Thin Places." Thin Places are those places or events when the dividing line between the holy and the ordinary become very thin. It's where the ordinary becomes holy and the holy becomes ordinary. When I come to moments that I can identify as a Thin Place, that's where I find hope. Other times, I stop looking at what is around me and intentionally look within me. It is within my soul where the streams of water flow and there I find hope. I must admit, however, there are times when my streams are dry. Those are the times I look beyond my situation and seek the one who is greater: Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God. (Psalm 42:11, NRSV)

When you take the time to think of that which is beyond yourself and your situation, you often can find hope. It is my prayer that during the New Year you'll find the hope needed for a life of meaning. If you need some help finding hope, I'd encourage you to make an appointment with one of us at the Counseling Center.