Hope is a Decision

Someone recommended to me a collection of essays named “Hope is a decision” by Daisaku Ikeda and it framed a question in my mind, is hope a decision?

Dictionary states that hope is desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment or to want something to happen or be true.

But what exactly is hope for us?

We set our alarms every day even though we are aware of the fact that tomorrow isn’t promised to us, tomorrow may not come. That’s hope! We hope to live longer than what is decided for us by God. We hope to wake up the next day and live one more day.

We say goodbye to our loved ones and yet we have a belief of seeing them again soon, that’s hope!

James Baldwin says, “The hope of the world lies in what one demands, not of others, but oneself.”

So can we say that hope is personal too? Or shall we say it’s collective?

When Aristotle says,” Hope is a waking dream”, it feels like I want to dream forever.

Hope isn’t essential, it’s a necessity for us to survive the brutality of the harsh world. It gives our wounds an aid, it gives our heart peace, and it gives our soul contentment.

If hope doesn’t exist, we can’t even think of a “life” for us. What keeps us alive is ‘hope’. Sometimes it’s for ease after a hardship or sometimes it’s for life after death.

The day we’ll stop hoping, we’ll stop living.

And when we say hope is a decision, we mean that it is the most vital decision we can make for ourselves. Hope changes everything, starting with our past, present, or future. It is a force that allows us to take action to make our dreams come true. It has the strength to change winter into summer, barrenness to evergreen, misery to joy. As long as we have hope, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. When we possess the treasure of being hopeful, we can draw forth our inner potential and strength. 

A person can feel strengthened if he has the power of hope in himself.

There will be times when you’ll be almost hopeless about something, but you have to make a decision then, rather you be hopeful and try to recharge yourself or you just don’t make an effort to better your ailment. When you choose the latter, you resist your growth whereas if you prefer the former you’ll always have something to live up for. I know it’s difficult for someone to hope for the light while being in darkness, but when you do, you certainly seek the light towards you. That’s what hope does to you, your aura. 

Hope is an abstract concept, it’s within, and you can feel it. And when you come up with a decision of being hopeful, you know exactly what you desire.

So, hope isn’t just a decision, it is also a choice you make. Sometimes too soon and sometimes too late in life. A decision that empowers you at every step of life.