The Power of Hope

Haiku

Guest Prompt Week 3, Day 3:“If you knew you’d be saved in the end, would you still fight?”

I recently watched a video of a 10K long distance race that took place in Nigeria back in 2019, where one of the contestants collapsed, I assume out of exhaustion just a few feet short of the finish line. But he did not lay down and accept his defeat, he was determined to finish the race. So, he pushed himself and got on his hands and knees and began crawling towards the finish line. Luckily, a fellow runner came to his aid and with that help he was able to cross the finish line where medical assistance arrived to treat him.

hope’s the vision of crossing the finish line in the pursuit of life.

The story was about sportsmanship and rightfully so, but I would like to highlight the resilience of the runner who was eager to cross that finish line no matter what it took. That is the true meaning of the power of hope and perhaps mind over matter. Though his body gave up on him, he kept his faith and refused to give up on himself. In in his mind, he was determined to finish that race.

Dan Catalin presented a very introspective view on hope, he states, “if hope can make exhausted rats swim for that long, what could a bit of faith in yourself and your abilities do for you? Remember what you’re capable of. Remember why you’re here.”

If those words didn’t motivate you then perhaps you need to get out of the race. Sit this one out and come back when you are determined to go the distance. Life itself is a race and we all have the innate ability to push ourselves further than our minds can fathom.

Though we don’t have control of where the final finish line will be, we can control and set milestones that we can commit to crossing as we trek along in the race. With a little bit of hope mixed with a little bit of determination, and a little bit of mental strength, those milestones can be easily achieved. The power is in our hands if only we believe.

Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today. Thich Nhat Hanh

Dan Catalin asked, “if you knew you’d be saved in the end, would you still fight?” My answer is absolutely I would fight. In the pursuit of life, I have learned that I have to fight for myself because if I don’t fight for me, then I can’t expect others to be willing to fight for someone who has given up on themselves. If I have faith in myself, then others will have faith in me. That is just how the power of hope works in the pursuit of life.

So, I will keep on running and have faith knowing that I will cross those milestones, and if at some point it becomes too much for me to bear and I need help, I have enough hope that someone will recognize the fight in me, and perhaps help me across the finish line.

Thank you Dan Catalin for this insightful and motivational prompt. It lit a fire of hope in my mind and reminded me to continue believing in myself. Hope has to begin with me, I must feel it in my mind and in my heart, and only then will others have hope in me. I am routing for us all to finish this race of life successfully.

This was written in response to Dan Catalin’s Friday Guest Prompt:

Thank you all for reading. And thank you Diana C. for creating the space so that we all can revisit stages in our lives, tell our stories, grow, and heal. KTHT has been a rollercoaster, one that I don’t mind riding.