“Optimism and hope are not the same. Optimism is the belief that the world is changing for the better; hope is the belief that, together, we can make the world better.” ~ Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, To Heal a Fractured World (page 166)
Rabbi Sacks’ words, said years ago, ring for me as though they were spoken today. Optimism is a positive stance, but a passive one. A slight whisper in the human soul, no more than a thought that effects no change in reality. Hope, in contrast, is an engine that brings about action. Hope picks me up off my easy chair, disengages me from the latest news broadcast, and propels me out of the house. And there, outside, the action happens. Each one of us who hopes acts in the way that’s right for him or her to lift our country from the dust toward a better future. Some of us go out to demonstrate, to give support to families awaiting those who have not yet returned. Some of us volunteer to help the families of reservists. Others serve in the reserves themselves. Still others get involved in educational work. The main thing is — to hope. As our national anthem tells us, “Our hope is not yet lost …”
