Wait and Hope

     A brilliant writer by the name of Alexandre Dumas once said - "All human wisdom is summed up in these two words -- wait and hope". 
     How easy it is sometimes to despond; to sink beneath the burdens of sorrow; of loneliness; of illness; of self-doubt; of a sense that your life is not the life you'd planned.
     In this world, these burdens are as quotidian as the air we breathe, and life rarely ever turns out as we plan.
     As a young girl, my life-plan was concise, idyllic, and seemed only a breath away.  I imagined that I would have an active social life, that I would attend a community college, get a pleasant little part time job, and pursue my religious goals, which are the most important in my life, and that I would eventually marry, have a couple of kids, and live a life of domestic bliss, caring for my family, and serving God.
     However, my life, like so many lives, defied the plans that were made for it, and took an unforeseen, and much less desirable turn, and often, as I lay in my bed, unable to work, or drive, or go to school, unable by far to reach the goals I had set for myself, it is hard not to regret the life I had imagined, or to feel the weight of my lack of self-sufficiency.
     While it is not always easy to "wait and hope", to do so is a wonderful solace.  I truly believe that the world awaits a bright future, and that if one does what they can with the life they have, if they can rise above life's difficulties, to wait, and work hopefully for the brighter future at hand, then this is true strength.