Hope Force Nation

Sometimes fear whispers “What if everything falls apart?” But faith answers, “Even if it does… God is still with me.” Faith isn’t pretending life will be easy. It’s trusting that God is bigger than whatever comes. So whatever you’re facing today… breathe, pray, and keep moving forward. ❤️ “For we live by faith, not by sight.” — 2 Corinthians 5:7.....from Mindful Christianity

I have sat in many circles with my work in Restorative Justice. We talked about the ripple effects of harm and the ripple effects of good. What ripple legacy will you be remembered for, what ripple are you creating that inspires versus tearing down. We are each responsible for that regardless of what choices are made by those around us, regardless of the beliefs they hold, it is theirs, and you have yours. The circle taught me so many things, things I can't even explain; just that it changed me. It enabled me to embrace differences, to know that healthy conversations within those differences created respect and a willingness to listen which provided inner growth and lasting friendships. "Like stones thrown in the same river, their ripples meet and remind us that ALL of us are connected! Standing together, (even in our differences) we are one.

Êkwa nitisânak, I have just returned from the funeral of a man whose company I cherished, a man I was grateful to share time and stories with. To sit with his memory reminds me that life itself is fragile, and each moment is a gift.

These days are heavy and test the heart. We wake to many sorrows — a school shooting in Evergreen, the anniversary of the towers falling on September 11th, the sudden death of Charlie Kirk, and the passing of loved ones close to our own circle. Each carries its own weight, its own bundle of grief. Yet one does not cancel the other, one sorrow does not diminish another. The drumbeat of tragedy is not a contest — it is a reminder that all life is sacred, and every loss matters.

The kêhtê-ayak (elders) remind us: when stones are dropped into the same river, each sends out its own ripples. They overlap, they touch, they shape the waters together. So it is with these tragedies. The children of Evergreen, running for their lives; the memory of families staring at the smoke over Manhattan; the voice of a young leader silenced suddenly; and the quiet mourning of a good man laid to rest. Each ripple touches us, each calls us to compassion.

Yet I have listened to many people, quick to virtue signal while dehumanizing others they call “evil.” But to rob a person of their humanity is to forfeit our own. That is the history of colonialism, and it is the cycle we are called to break. If we repeat that cycle, we do not heal — we only carry forward the very wound we claim to resist.

But there is another teaching here: in the face of many sorrows, the spirit does not break. We remember the courage of first responders on 9/11. We see neighbors in Colorado opening their doors to frightened students. We hear prayers rising for all who grieve, near and far. These are not small things. They are the signs that mîno-pimâtisiwin — the good life — still calls us forward.

We must not become numb. We must not say, “this sorrow is greater, that one is less.” Instead, we must say: every life matters, every loss is sacred, and every moment is a chance to choose love over fear. Hope is not found in denying tragedy but in standing together through it.

Let today be such a day. A day where we honor the fallen, comfort the living, and carry forward the teaching that in the great circle, we are all one. Wâhkôhtowin — sacred relationship — is the medicine we need.

—Kanipawit Maskwa
John Gonzalez

Keep Hope Alive

Today is a gift. How we choose to use that gift is up to us. Life will not always be perfect or go according to plan. Every day may have its struggles and challenges, but it's important to remember that our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but by how we choose to react or respond to what happens to us. No matter how tough life may feel right now, keep hope alive in your heart. The birds don't just sing on the good days, they sing each and
every day.

~ Mary Anne Byrne

It's the time of year, the season, the Holidays, that makes missing our loved ones gone too soon, a hard reality. Regardless of how much time has passed, there are flicker of moments that makes our hearts hurt wishing they were here. The other reality is that we don't want them forgotten and we want to hear their name and memories that include them. This will be our 8th Holiday Season without our daughter. And though that seems impossible, we still honor her with special traditions and memories that mean even more when others do the same. It's a blessing to us. Be that family, person that reaches out and blesses a family by saying their loved ones name this Holiday Season.

Take time for 1 more moment....

"I promise from now on to always make time for at least one more. One more chapter before I turn out the light and float off to sleep. One more kiss before I sink into this sea of words and search for meaning to bring back up with me. One more stretch and one more wiggle of my toes before I jump out of bed; and one more moment in meditation before I re-emerge. One more full, deep breath and one more look at the sunset. One more touch, one more smile, one more moment of stillness, of gratitude, of simplicity, of love. From now on, I’ll always make room for one more because you never know when one more is all you’ll ever have".

By Cristen Rodgers

Living Through Memories.....

There are moments when the present feels too heavy, when the weight of loss presses down so hard it’s hard to breathe. In those moments, I find myself retreating to memories—tiny sanctuaries where love still feels alive, untouched by time. I close my eyes, and suddenly I’m there again, in a simpler time, surrounded by laughter and the sound of a voice I’d give anything to hear one more time.
Memories are a strange kind of lifeline. They can be bittersweet, bringing both comfort and a pang of longing. But they are also where I find the essence of what I’ve lost, those small moments of kindness, the look in his(her) eyes, or the familiar way he’d(she'd) hold my hand. In my memories, I feel the warmth of his(her) love, a love that even time cannot erase.

Living through memories doesn’t mean I’m stuck in the past. It means I’m honoring it, holding close what was most beautiful. Because in a world that sometimes feels empty, memories are where I find the strength to keep going. They are the bridge between what was and what still lives in my heart, a quiet reminder that love, in all its forms, never truly dies.

Taken from Our Memories

Sometimes you just need to slow down, and let life happen.
Take a deep breath, close your eyes and re-focus to just being you and being present. You are alive, you're breathing, you're enough as you are, and where you are in your journey. You were born with a purpose.

You can do this. Win the Day. Be Difference Makers.

Sometimes you stumble upon someone's written thoughts, feelings and it so resonates with your own that you feel like you have written those very words. That is how I felt when I read the following. Our family just returned from our annual family vacation. I treasure these moments and memories made. But I also can't shake off the feeling of Breanna not with us. The signs were everywhere that she was..... but her physical presence was greatly missed, her laughter, her humor, her creative thoughts, her love for traveling. But we have learned to dance .......

“You will lose someone you can’t live without, and your heart will be badly broken, and the bad news is that you never completely get over the loss. But this is also the good news. They live forever in your broken heart that doesn’t seal back up. And you come through. It’s like having a broken leg that never heals perfectly — that still hurts when the weather gets cold, but you learn to dance even with the limp.”

Anne Lamott
Lyda Borelli, 1910.

"the best medicine you can bring for sadness is not joy. it is not telling them that they need to move on or get over it or realise how much worse things could be. no. the medicine for a spirit in mourning is tenderness. and warmth. and compassion. and connection. and presence. sit with someone in their grief and let them cry their ugly tears. do not shine and scurry grief away. they must walk through it. this is love. to abandon all that we think we know and be so full of grace that we are invited in to partake in someone else's darkest moments. what an honour it is to simply be a light. the antidote for sadness is love. it is always love."

~ "the antidote" by Ullie Kaye Poetry

The long and winding road .....

When our daughter unexpectedly died 7 years and 2 1/2 months ago, we were deeply touched by our family and friends support; even people we didn't know shared their sympathy with us. It shattered our lives into a million pieces and it seemed there was no light before us that would be able to help put our lives back together. Our journey was difficult. It was hard. It was more challenging than ANYTHING anyone of us had ever been through. Our daughter was deeply loved then and will be always. Our daughter is now deeply missed forever. We walk a path we wouldn't wish on our worst enemy. And when difficulties come our way, they seem easy compared to our loss. The good news is that we have learned in time, to take her with us in our hearts, we carry her in our thoughts and share her stories. The signs we receive provide great comfort and yet a reminder that we will never physically see her on this earth again.

We are stronger, we are changed, our normal is different, we love deeper, and we see life through different eyes than before. So the tears come and go as our love for her will forever remain. And when our life here is finished, I have a feeling she will be waiting to give us that hug that we so miss giving and miss receiving. That makes me smile knowing we carry that hope with us.

—Text below is from 'Before the Coffee Gets Cold, a novel by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Don't leave anything for later.
Later, the coffee gets cold.
Later, you lose interest.
Later, the day turns into night.
Later, people grow up.
Later, people grow old.
Later, life goes by.
Later, you regret not doing something...
When you had the chance.

Life is a fleeting dance, a delicate balance of moments that unfold before us, never to return in quite the same way again.

Regret is a bitter pill to swallow, a weight that bears down upon the soul with the burden of missed chances and unspoken words.

So, let us not leave anything for later. Let us seize the moments as they come, with hearts open and arms outstretched to embrace the possibilities that lie before us. For in the end, it is not the things we did that we regret, but the things we left undone, the words left unspoken, the dreams left unfulfilled.

— Before the Coffee Gets Cold is novel by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

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