[Have Hope]

Have you ever noticed that sometimes it seems the universe is working completely with you to give you what you need and want, and then at other times, it's working completely against you?

I'm in one of those times when it's working against me.

[Yaowen]

Dear Have Hope,

I have also felt that way sometimes. Lately, though, I have tended to look at what happens to me and in particular falls and misfortunes from the point of view of "could be worse but isn't worse, thank goodness."

I think I learned this from people I knew who had suffered great misfortunes and tragedies and personal losses and failures and yet were strangely at peace and happy in the midst of their darkness. I noticed that these people seemed to have, as a default attitude, the point of view of "well, could be worse, but isn't worse" or "could have been worse, but isn't worse." These people taught me so much and I would call it a kind of "wisdom."

Sometimes I have been burdened with really crushing burdens, inescapable burdens and yet I have thought to myself: "Well, at least I am not trapped in a burning building and on fire." "Well, at least I am not stranded and lost in the desert with no water." "Well, at least I am not completely paralyzed." And thoughts like that.

And for some strange reason, this has given me a deep sense of peace in my distress and a sense of profound gratitude even in my misery.

It is so difficult to put into words, but it is as though even when the universe is frowning on me, deep down it is still smiling at me.

And spiritually I guess I see hope even in hopelessness.

Once I contracted an illness for which there was no cure. And it looked as though this was going to be the last chapter of my life. But I remember that somehow and from someplace I found a little spring of hope.

At that point I recalled the words of an elderly man in a similar situation. He was a Catholic theologian I think. Perhaps I am wrong about that. But in any case he had this strong belief that the God of his religion desired the salvation of every human being and that for this God all things were possible.

He said it gave him hope when he was feeling hopeless. I don't know why, but when I was near the end of my life, I remember this elderly man's words and it gave me great hope and comfort.

Strangely but luckily I did not pass away from this illness and got better. My doctor told me that this sometimes happens, that a person suddenly gets better when things seem hopeless.

Anyway, from that time I have tried to be a person of hope, a person who doesn't always look at things, like I used to, from the point of view of "could be better, but isn't better," but more often from the point of view of "could be worse, but isn't worse, thank goodness."

Of course I am only human and so there are still times when my first reaction to some misfortune is to think: "the universe is against me." So it is not a foreign thought or emotion to me.

Sadly my English is not very good and so I have probably expressed myself very, very poorly. Hopefully many people here on the Forums will see your post and respond to it better than I have.

What you describe is something very profound and I thank you so much for sharing it. Please forgive me if through my poor reflections I have trespassed on your post with my foolish ideas. Your posts are always great and thought-provoking.

Sincerely yours, Yao Wen PS: I like your screen name.

[Have Hope]

Originally Posted by Yaowen

Dear Have Hope,

I have also felt that way sometimes. Lately, though, I have tended to look at what happens to me and in particular falls and misfortunes from the point of view of "could be worse but isn't worse, thank goodness."

I think I learned this from people I knew who had suffered great misfortunes and tragedies and personal losses and failures and yet were strangely at peace and happy in the midst of their darkness. I noticed that these people seemed to have, as a default attitude, the point of view of "well, could be worse, but isn't worse" or "could have been worse, but isn't worse." These people taught me so much and I would call it a kind of "wisdom."

Sometimes I have been burdened with really crushing burdens, inescapable burdens and yet I have thought to myself: "Well, at least I am not trapped in a burning building and on fire." "Well, at least I am not stranded and lost in the desert with no water." "Well, at least I am not completely paralyzed." And thoughts like that.

And for some strange reason, this has given me a deep sense of peace in my distress and a sense of profound gratitude even in my misery.

It is so difficult to put into words, but it is as though even when the universe is frowning on me, deep down it is still smiling at me.

And spiritually I guess I see hope even in hopelessness.

Once I contracted an illness for which there was no cure. And it looked as though this was going to be the last chapter of my life. But I remember that somehow and from someplace I found a little spring of hope.

At that point I recalled the words of an elderly man in a similar situation. He was a Catholic theologian I think. Perhaps I am wrong about that. But in any case he had this strong belief that the God of his religion desired the salvation of every human being and that for this God all things were possible.

He said it gave him hope when he was feeling hopeless. I don't know why, but when I was near the end of my life, I remember this elderly man's words and it gave me great hope and comfort.

Strangely but luckily I did not pass away from this illness and got better. My doctor told me that this sometimes happens, that a person suddenly gets better when things seem hopeless.

Anyway, from that time I have tried to be a person of hope, a person who doesn't always look at things, like I used to, from the point of view of "could be better, but isn't better," but more often from the point of view of "could be worse, but isn't worse, thank goodness."

Of course I am only human and so there are still times when my first reaction to some misfortune is to think: "the universe is against me." So it is not a foreign thought or emotion to me.

Sadly my English is not very good and so I have probably expressed myself very, very poorly. Hopefully many people here on the Forums will see your post and respond to it better than I have.

What you describe is something very profound and I thank you so much for sharing it. Please forgive me if through my poor reflections I have trespassed on your post with my foolish ideas. Your posts are always great and thought-provoking.

Sincerely yours, Yao Wen PS: I like your screen name.

Thank you @Yaowen.

That's miraculous that you recovered from an incurable illness. Amazing story!

And your English is just fine! I can understand your post very clearly.

I hear what you're saying. You're basically saying always look at the brighter side of things (and I usually can). And you're saying to hold onto hope through the darkness, which I do understand as well.

What I more so am talking about is when things you want and need are just not happening. And when it seems like no matter what effort you put in, something within the universe (beyond your control) is setting up roadblocks, hindrances and obstacles, leading to misery, more pain and physical and emotional setbacks.

I am just very frustrated. Nothing seems to working in my favor. It's during these times that it feels I am fighting the universe and what the universe wants for me.

[Yaowen]

Dear Have Hope,

I have also felt that way at times. It is very frustrating and demoralizing. Wish I knew what to say that would help!

Sincerely yours, Yao Wen

[Have Hope]

Originally Posted by Yaowen

Dear Have Hope,

I have also felt that way at times. It is very frustrating and demoralizing. Wish I knew what to say that would help!

Sincerely yours, Yao Wen

Thank you @Yaowen.

It is frustrating. I'm just trying to understand it.

The cosmos are vast. There's such things as Mercury Retrograde, which F's everything up for at least one-two months. Planetary alignments can influence what's happening in your life. There's so much that we are powerless against.....

I felt this way years ago too. And at that. point, I decided to just "give In" to the way the universe was flowing.

So maybe that's what I need to do right now. Is accept the way it's flowing, rather than fight against it. I cannot be a salmon swimming upstream. I must flow with the stream.

I have to keep trying though.

There's a thing called divine timing too. Perhaps it's all according to that.