I was thinking this Sunday morning we all need
a good swig of hope. We’re inundated daily by
news feeds of bleak times. No one reports the
good news. I thought of Waterhouse's painting
of Pandora, and had these idle thoughts on the
subject of hope.
Submitted to Poets & Storytellers United
June 28, 2020
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In Greek mythology, Pandora opened the box and released all sorts of ills and evils
upon the world. What we hear less about is that, according to legend, the box also
contained hope. There are varying interpretations as to whether or not hope was
released or remained securely hidden within the box. That said, most of us live
with hope…..a steady and abiding belief the sun will come up tomorrow.
Some folks seem to have more hope than others. These folks usually give hope a
helping hand by hard work and determination. Some seem to think hope is all
that is needed, and adapt a wait-and-see attitude, expecting some sort of miracle to
provide their desired outcome.. Still others have bowed to life’s pressures and
abandoned hope, always seeming to expect the worst and by some peculiar twist of
fate seeming to attract misfortune to themselves in a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy.
I like to think that perhaps at the bottom of Pandora's box was a bottle of hope, and
when we're running out of cope, we can open the bottle and take a sip.
Please, don’t diminish my fancy!
I believe your theory is quite correct, and not just about the hope bottle but also about the fact that hope without hard work to feed it is just wishful thinking.
ReplyDeleteMay we always find our next sip of hope, and the energy to work to make it stronger.
Thanks, Magaly. A visit to your blog is a bit of a sip of hope always!
DeleteNow I'm wondering about the difference between faith and hope. I play out the worst case scenario and it makes the reality more acceptable.
ReplyDeleteI think faith and hope are closely related. Both require an accepting host!
DeleteI love this soo much!💝 I must confess I am one of those people who "seem to think hope is all that is needed, and adapt a wait-and-see attitude."🥰
ReplyDeleteReally i would be no where without hope. If one has it one is pushed into motion. Thank you for dropping by my sumie Sunday today.
ReplyDeletemuch❧✿❧love
That's a lovely fancy!
ReplyDeleteI learned from courses I did with Landmark Education that hope on its own is not very useful: adding intention makes all the difference! Which is like what you say above, in your second paragraph.
May we never lose hope. Lovely!
ReplyDeleteLove your 'take' on this mythic tale, that - up until this moment - I pretty much regarding as bad-news. It is so true: Perception is everything.
ReplyDeleteThe fable is o course a reassurance that we always have hope regardless of how much we have lost to give us help in the future.
ReplyDeleteI love your contemplation and how your described all the different ways of hope. I believe perception is very important in life and can help you through a lot of things
ReplyDeletethank you Beverly. your words were encouraging and yes, i've heard of that myth of Pandora's box. good new week to and stay blessed.
ReplyDeleteA sip of Gordons gin always helps. Pandora probably a bottle of mothers ruin in the bottom of the box !
ReplyDeleteGood words, Bev!
ReplyDeleteMaybe instead of a sip, a long pull from the bottle is in order? Perhaps your words are like that: a drink from the bottle called hope?
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joel, for not diminishing my fancy!!
DeleteYes, love the idea of a bottle of hope at the bottom of Pandora's box. Our family had Pandora's box fly open just days before we were locked down by Covid 19 and watching the pain of protests.
ReplyDeleteThat's pretty much what we hold on to.. that somewhere there is hope too in the middle of this dystopia.
ReplyDelete