The Word Called Hope

Recently I was busy reading a book called Man's Search for Meaning By Victor Frankl, a well known psychiatrist, a man who had seen the horrors of a concentration camp where people, most often than not, lost all their emotions, self respect and more so hope. It is indeed painful and sad to see what man can do to his brothers for the sheer greed of power. Yet Victor Frakl brings out to us concepts that have been observed in such situations and are now being used for our overall good under a psychiatric therapy called the Humanistic-existential therapy. He, in his book, focuses on how he survived during those times, how people around him survived, what kept them going and in a greater sense, what keeps us all going.

 

On the first page of the book the author makes the reader aware of one simple question that he, during his practice, had asked his depressed clients, ''Why don't you commit suicide?'' he'd ask. Ask the question to yourself now and then read further.

 

Most people, I guess including you, do in fact live in the hope of a better future, of fulfilling their dreams, for people they love and so on. True it is, man is an eternal optimist. In the worst of situations one always finds a striving, a hope that something better is to come. Search the internet on quotes about hope and these may be just some of the hundreds of quotes you'd come across-
 

-The capacity for hope is the most significant fact of life. It provides human beings with a sense of destination and the energy to get started.

 -We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.

-When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."


God is unfair. We all know that. How else is it that one man enjoys all the luxuries and comforts in the world and the other fights for his bare necessities? We can, at any time get deeper into this topic. You and me, we too have our share of sad stories, broken hearts and troubled times, don't we? And yes, we did NOT always deserve them. What keeps you going then? Find out and always hold on to it. I live to become somebody, to make my parents proud; my younger brother lives for the sheer joy of attending school and of being in the company of his friends. One lives for the future and the other for the present.


Recently I had also finished the book Aruna's Story by Pinki Virani. For those who don't know, its the story about Aruna Shanbaug a nurse from Karnataka . In 1973, while working at King Edward Memorial Hospital, Parel, Mumbai, she was sexually assaulted and has been in a vegetative state since the assault (Credit: Wikipedia). God is unfair because when you read the book you come to realize what a strong person Aruna was, how she fought a destiny that would have churned her into an obedient and unquestioning housewife to eventually land up as a non-conforming, independent woman. God is unfair because instead of marrying the man she loved, Aruna ended up being in coma for 37 long years, an appeal for euthanasia from her side by Pinki Virani being turned down by the court. Why do I tell this story when I am talking about hope you may ask. No, unlike what happens in Bollywood movies, I'm not going to surprise you with an impossible happy ending. This story is told because it sure does make one realize about how lucky we are to be alive, to be conscious and to have a choice to shape our destiny the way we want to. So smile, because God has been fair to you. He has indeed given you everything you need to make meaning out of your life. Now that reminds me that making meaning out of one's life does'nt merely mean becoming an engineer, a doctor, an accountant or a journalist, it also includes being aware of the people out there who unfortunately are not as lucky as us and saving our sympathy and compassion for them.


You have got one life. Live it to the fullest.
Never lose hope. Who knows what the future holds for you?

:)


Its over. FINALLY!! Now you can take a deep breath. :)
ANd please comment! :)