Hope Road

I always used to love the beginning of the year as a child, when back at school we would be given brand new exercise books with clean, crisp pages & A4 pencils never before used or sharpened. They were mine.. to write in with best printing & utmost care. Then, oh no, a couple of weeks down the track & the printing wasn't so neat & there were smudges & mistakes..utmost care went awol & the book became just ordinary. Life is like that, even now, just a bit..we all begin the year with utmost care & best of intentions & then after a while it all gets a bit loose & flappy & that clean fresh start is tarnished.

I don't do resolutions but I have found myself a word for this year, or rather it found me. Everywhere I go... there is HOPE, meeting me nose to nose

via tumblr

 ...shining itself in to every nook & cranny of my life (found this in Dannevirke on the rescue mission)

 I have been in need of hope for sometime now, I must say. At least a decade ago I bought this lovely bottle of olive oil...you see hope needs handles..something we can hold on to, to get us through the hard times in life.

A few days ago I bought some delicious apricots from a man called..none other than.. Mr Hope!

 So I began to ponder the question..well what is hope.. really?
I liked this thought..

"The strongest form of HOPE has always been a verb;  requiring action for it to be at all. And that action is  more than an idle wishing, or relying on circumstances  or situations to resolve themselves. It begs investment  in an end-result, something you can already envision as  a complete and fully realized actuality.  It suggests a formulated plan that makes  accommodations for the steps along the way towards  that ultimate aim. It requires a sense of possibility that makes the feasibility  of such an idea a tangible reality, even in the face of  challenge. And most importantly, Hope is connected to a  subject, nouns and pronouns, both plural and individual.  In essence, HOPE in its highest form can’t exist without us.  It needs us to make it happen.  Without us, it goes back to its stick-figure, four-letter  status, gathering dust on a peeling bumper sticker  or faded window sign.  And with us, HOPE is reality because we make it so." from Dianne (an educator) via I am good news  Then Hope knocked on my door with this   HOPErevo.com "Start a hope revolution Where is despair telling stories in your world? What tiny bit of hope and goodness might you create to counterbalance those tales? Write the hope notes that you most need to read,  the words that inspire you and help you hold on to hope. Create notes of kindness You don't need much more than pen and paper  and the power of hope-FULL words.  Or, if you want to get fancy, get out the colored  markers,  construction paper or glitter. It's up to you. Add your messages of hope, and on the back  or bottom  of the note,  include the URL hoperevo.com! Leave your notes in unexpected places Hit the town and leave your notes in places they're likely to be found. Leave one behind on the table at your local coffee shop...... ~~~~~~~~~ Hope is so much more than wishing. It needs us all working & caring together with our best tender hearts.  A tiny “door of hope”  (pic via beauty in everything) Even though some of us might just wish that we could hide  away on holiday forever, or at least a little while longer!  via  weheartit I find myself quite enchanted by the concept of this Parisian book shop where a bed is sometimes  provided for the odd hapless traveler amidst  the library.. oh what an escape!

 This is who I long to be..one who carries light

 & leaves illumination for those who come after me.

curlygirldesign.com 

(I bought this card recently I love it!)

 with the hope that we might all run in to life
 with joy.. without fear of falling or failing

 .. it all begins with patience & planting seeds...of hope

 and friendship...a pomegranate flower from our park (a symbol of perfect friendship)

 May our lives be touched by Bluebirds of happiness this year & hope drenched adventures.

Last night (after a 33 degree day!) I went to pop my car away & as I turned on the ignition & drove the

 2 metres in to the garage the radio came on & I heard this disembodied voice say ..."hope.. beyond the hurt" I think perhaps that has to be my hope note for this week "THERE IS HOPE.. BEYOND THE HURT" & I know exactly who needs to hear that..even a txt would do it. 

 I'd love you to join me in the project of the hope revolution..even the simplest acts can touch lives profoundly. Let's embroider life with golden threads of hope through acts of kindness & HOPE full words. Where is despair telling stories in your world? I have heard maybe a dozen heart wrenching stories already this year..people facing really hard stuff. Even the comments that we leave for one another through blogging or other social networks can bring hope & encouragement...might even mean the world to someone else. Let's carry hope close & share it where ever we can. I'd love to hear your hope stories...!

HOPE-FULLY yours

 MUCH

 XOXO