on hope(lesness)

I.

the pain of the world has left scars on us all, 

which grow deeper and more painful each day. 

its welts have turned black and bruised, 

and our words and actions seem to fail in the face of two-thousand-pound bombs

our days have become involuntary witnesses to this beat of violence, 

and at worst, we have become numb to it.

how does one overcome these tragedies and, better yet, possibly conceive of the fact that still, others are going through much worse?

II. 

is it possible to let the world’s affairs slide and roll off our consciousness like water off a duck’s back?

is it possible to create a veil of separation, 

to block out our hearts to the pain in the world?

to do just that would be easier on our hearts and minds,

yet our shared responsibility demands that we care deeply for each other.

III. 

i have a fierce love and hope for the world that survives despite everything 

it feels like hopeless naivety some days, 

but on others, I cling to it desperately,

looking for some meaning within all this pain and heartbreak

it saves me, then, that childlike love and wonder.

it remains defiantly, protected by little reminders of life’s goodness and infinite blessings: 

a professor that reaches out, a walk through a tree-lined street,

the food that fills my stomach, my warm bed at night,

the careless abandon with which i laugh with my friends,

and the warmth of the sun after the impossible cold.

IV.

i believe that despite everything, all will be well if we take care of each other. 

V.

i say that the world is brutal enough as it is–

we do not need ourselves to grow hardened to it.

we should not be indifferent to the possibilities that can come.

we need only to take our anger and grief 

and transform it into action.

our hearts can grow tired,

but never should we abandon hope,

for we lose by falling to despair.