There is Always Hope

This is a photo of my journal.

The cover is a photo of Banksy's Little Girl with Red Balloon. The wall to the right says, "There is always hope."

That is my theme this year. There is always hope.

Sometimes I let what I can see, taste, touch, hear and feel convince me that logic is smarter than hope. Often more than sometimes.

Why do you think we love watching children?

Why do you think their awe and wonder bring warmth to our hearts. Because they hope.

What if Martin Luther King Jr stopped dreaming? What if he looked at the state of the world on that day and said, "I'm sick of dreaming, it lands me in jail, and I've run out of hope that George Wallace will ever change. I look at reality and I know that it's an uphill battle. Kennedy will never pass Civil Rights Bills, our children will never be equal and there is certainly no hope that a black man will hold any position of power in this nation."

You can think I am silly and childish and idealistic, but I will not stop hoping. I will not stop hoping for Northern Africa and Southern Iraq. I will not stop dreaming peace for Kabul, for liberty for Tibet or democratic freedom for China. I will not stop hoping for peace between Israel and Palestine. I will not stop hoping for clean water in Zimbabwe, the end of Mugabe's reign and for Ugandans to live to see the day that Joseph Kuny is brought before an international tribunal. I will not stop hoping that we will think of the people on corners begging for money as people who must have suffered some terrible journey to beg... I will not stop hoping that we will press on to love, even when it hurts, because it's easy to love the ones who love you. I will not stop hoping that we will all do what we can, where we can and KNOW that it makes a difference. I will hope. I will not stop hoping. And all of the world and what happens in it can yell to me that there is no point, but I will stand on my dreams and bring as many people as I can with me.

And some days my little red balloon may escape me... but I know that there are more where that one came from.

You can see an original photo of this piece here;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/markburdett/12907955/