What is Hope? It can be a vision, a positive feeling, and an inspired action. To hope for anything, you must create positive emotions and apply inspired action. Winston Churchill once said, “Fear is a reaction. Hope is a decision.”
I feel this quote deeply as I see my mom moving daily through grief and emotions of missing my dad. Her life partner for 60 years. She is a living example of hope for a better day and moving past fears of the unknowns. I am so proud that she has found the strength to take care of herself and do what she needs to do to make it through another day. Some days are hard. Some are better. She is brave and strong.
We are blessed to have each other as a family to support and encourage each other in our journey. My mom is making hopeful decisions to continue and find joy each day. Maybe partially because my dad would want that for her and possibly because she desires to find her own peaceful “new normal”. She has a lot to live for and look forward to.
I asked my mom to join Bernie, Anthony, and me on our summer Hilton Head vacation. At first, she said no because she did not want to leave the house for she felt close to my dad there. It's understandable and completely ok.
My mom called me back the very next day. She said she had time to think about it, wanted to go, and was excited about being with us. I felt this was my mom moving past the fears, inspired to apply actions to find her hope. I am so proud of her for deciding to fight for her joy, happiness, and hope for the future.
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