Hope Lives Within Us

 

In a World becoming quickly consumed by Greed, Envy, Jealousy, Fear, and Anxiety, we need Hope now more than ever. But where is it? It may be closer than you think. Look in the mirror. Be the Hope YOU need.

Hope is a waking dream.~ Aristotle

The world may seem or feel like there is no hope for humanity. There's no handouts for it. So many have their own biases and motives. But for you.. For me... We must create that hope inside ourselves and bring it out in the world.

My hope is in Writing. 

This makes me think about the nature of hope and even inspiration. Faith and belief. Each of these concepts interwoven into each other. A sweatshirt to shield us from the cold, harsh reality outside of ourselves.

If I can keep it 💯 with you all,

It's fairly simple for me to inspire hope and positivity in other people. I can sit and listen and just KNOW the right thing to say or share. I live for that shit at times, to see and know people around me are doing well and are happier given my contribution or efforts, no matter how small.

But internally, it can be a brutal struggle to believe in the hope of the desired future. When all is going well, it's easy for me to believe positive narration I've listened to or have written down. It's easy to remember that things are always working out for me, that I have all that I need, that there's abundance in love, life and creativity.  

That is, until the reality of life slaps me in the face with a wet towel saying "aight bruh, fuck your affirmations and your vibration." This is the real world. Where the sun ain't always shining, where it rains and sleets on your well-being.

When the shit piles up, it really tests my metal... To see if I'm really about that 'positive lifestyle'. It's a brutally honest litmus test and quite often it takes a lot of work and resilience to hold tight and realize that what's happening will prepare me for better. It's just a scary process and that's because of my own beliefs and limitations.

I want to talk about finding hope because, we are indeed in some Dark Times, and regardless of who and where you are in your life journey, we all need to find it, often in the everyday moments.

We're in Some Dark Times

I'm a Hip Hop head by default, being raised in the Bronx from birth. I was talking to my boy from the block Felt aka Agent F and I want to share something from a theme song of ours. The bars come from the record What We Do feat. Freeway, Jay-Z (in his Prime), and Beanie Sigel. No Copyright intended, nuff respect due to the artists. 

 

We still hustle 'til the sun comes up

Crack a forty when the sun goes down

It's a cold winter; y'all - better bundle up

And I bet it will be a hotter summer, grab an onion just to rock it down

You hot now, listen up

Don't you know cops' sole purpose is to lock us down?

And throw away the key

But without this drug -, your kids don't have any way to eat, huh?

We still try to keep mom smiling

'Cause when her teeth stop showin' and her stomach starts growling, then the heat starts flowing

If you are from the hood, I know you feel me (keep goin')

If a sneak starts leaning and the heat stops workin'

Then my heat started working, and I'ma rob me a person

Catch a - sleeping while he out in the open

 

I'll stop there. Can't give you the whole record. The reason I highlight a good chunk of the Freeway verse is because this is the reality for so many of us, now more than ever, especially in the low to middle class neighborhoods and homes. 

Sadly, its not just the urban communities going through this scenario. There's a bit of unrest and uncertainty for all of us.

There's division where us folks should be coming together, with Race and Gender in the spotlight of 'We, The People' while those that maintain the standard sweeps it under the rug to make us Great Again...or are we truly unified in being 'Great Again'? 

Political parties fanning the flames and holding the government itself hostage. Civil Workers, Soldiers (like myself), and military Veterans left without pay.

Lets dig deeper, communities and households stripped of their government and state support with the big unknown variable of WHEN lingering over their heads.

When will the stalemate end?

When will we get paid?

When will we get to get our next meals?

When will we get our benefits?

When will the bullshit stop?

When will we be Free instead of gassed up to be 'Great Again'?

Since when did the United States divide its people?

Since when did we hype ourselves up for War because we wanted something to do? (The fucking War Department? What???)

Since when do we have leaders bickering to flex muscles that were repressed when they were children. Or they had to answer to megalomaniac parents and bosses and now that they are on their own and in office they start shit they have no intention of staying for the consequences?

We're a command, a button press, and a raid gone wrong away from what no one wants, another conflict with the United States as the enemy of choice, especially from within its own borders. Don't act like it won't happen to us because we're so Godly.

But I digress. I'm not here to name all of the woes of uncertainty we now face. I'm here to say in the midst of all of that is a slither of hope. It may appear small but HOPE is there. It's just not in the Outside world.

Hope Lives Within Us

For some of us, we seek everything outside of ourselves. I speak for myself as a person that once sought approval, validation, and acceptance for everything I did. Though I am still learning to see and do things differently, I realize that the most important person that I need to approve, validate, and accept what I do or stand for is ME. That is self love. That is walking in my Power, and a part of that Power is the Hope within ME!

That isn't to say that there isn't a sense of hope within our friendships, family, relationships, and support groups. Hope can be force multiplied in each of these bonds.

Lets take Religion for example. I may not agree with subjugating myself to accept religious beliefs anymore, but I have to tip my head at their attempt to TRY and instill a sense of comradery amongst a group of people. This can be the breeding ground of strong belief in some form of goodness in the world, so long as there is no force, threats of damnation if you don't follow the religious doctrine to the letter, harm or kill anyone in the name of their deity (ies). 

There is power in belief that can pull us outside of the uncertainty of the consequences of being human. Of course, there are those that twist the texts and weaponize it, leading its people down a path of destruction and chaos. But, in general, religions walk the line of peace for the most part.

Beliefs can lead to a growing sense of hope. Some may call it foolish. Some may call it delusion on your part, but I think its better to believe in something that resonates with you at the individual level, rather than wander through life at the mercy of the powers that be, without a say or something that drives you other than the need to survive through the hustle of the modern human experience.

Some of you may be asking:

"Aight, so how do you have a sense of hope these days? Didn't you say it was hard to do?"

I'll gladly answer with a smile and say Yes. It's hard as fuck to have a sense of hope in this crazy world that we humans have complicated with money quarrels, power and ego trips, and the survivalist "gimme mine" mindsets that plague so many of us. Freeway said it, its a cold winter, y'all - Betta bundle up. However, you can find and build upon the warmth within....and here's how you can do it.

Build Hope from Within

The root of establishing Hope is to know thy self. Get to explore, know, and understand everything that is YOU. Authentic and unapologetic you. 

Not the achiever, not the show off, not the version of you that wears a different mask depending on who you speak to or encounter, but true you. This takes a lot of introspection and work over time. To help my process along the way, I journal everything. During my self study I've come to realize that I wasn't as bad as I made myself out to be. Sure I had my struggles (still do to an extent), but I am a pretty awesome person that is destined for something awesome. 

As you learn things about yourself, dig in through the indoctrination, repressed thoughts and emotions, and accept yourself as you are, you light the match of something powerful. You establish love and hope for yourself. It may be a messy process, but that's okay. Whatever brings you to the surface will allow you to see the authenticity in you and all that comes with it.

Getting to know thyself opens the gateway to your most potent talents, gifts, and abilities. We human beings are thinkers and feelers for a reason. We have our body parts for a reason. We are here to create. What we create...what we do...these gifts have the ability to inspire others as well as ourselves, and THAT multiplies HOPE. Think about it, when an actor or singer performs their art, they have the power to inspire others. That inspiration builds upon a sense of hope for others, that they too can do what that celebrity does. For the non-artistic professions, that person is still a co-creator of their existence. The Athletes that perform for their fans or for the enjoyment of the sport, their energy has the power to instill hope within the world.

This creation to instill hope concept resonates with me because for such a long time I played it small. I was uncertain of myself as a writer...but as I got to the depths of myself I realized that I have a powerful voice and a unique set of skills. I am a word wizard unlike anyone else, nor do I want to do it like anyone else. There's things I want to do that scare the shit out of me and make me battle against my limiting beliefs, which feels like a never-ending battle (See my Blog Standing in My Own Way). But if I don't do it, I'll remain where I'm at...and that's not living. As Amie McNee says in her book: The World Needs Your Art. In my case, the world needs my bars! With my talent I can paint pictures with words to help others navigate their lives, from in between the lines (see? Bars!). 

I can offer hope to those that need what I say, and inspire others to try their hand and do the same. If we all took time to look inward and offer something, even without the desire for funding and waves of validation, we could make a difference in the world. We could make a difference for ourselves.

But I'm not going to kid you, its a fucking battle both on the inside and the outside. It can seem nonstop as you are constantly challenged through day to day life. You are challenged by what you consume with all of your senses. You are going to be challenged by people you know, love, hate, and may need to cut off. You are most of all going to be challenged by your doubts, fears, concerns, and your vices (because we all have them...stop fruntin'. Yes sing it like Pharell- IYKYK). But you know what, knowing that I have the power to heal myself and make a difference through what I write, no matter how slow word gets around, no matter how many followers or subscribers I have, no matter how much it costs or how little I may make as a stream of income, I have to do this. I owe it to myself...

Because this is my HOPE in Dark Times. What's your HOPE? Hit me up in the comments below. I'd love to converse with you!

#IAmRonin #StillHere #QuotesAndAlchemy #OpenLoops #CompassChecks