My Hope
“Hope is the dream of a waking man.”
-Aristole
Dear Sarah,
You are now twenty four years old.
Congratulations! You made it!
A year ago, you were twenty three and life probably seemed completely different. And two years ago, I bet you never could have imagined your life as it is today.
If life has taught me anything, it’s that everything changes.
We are triangles.
Even though you don’t know exactly where 24 will take you, I hope to provide you with a little comfort for the road ahead and express a few birthday wishes for your ongoing journey.
Trust me, not everything is going to be easy. Be grateful for the plateaus. They take us to new heights.
You will change. Get over it. Don’t fight the inevitable and unavoidable.
I hope that your perspectives are challenged. I hope you learn to live in new ways. I hope you learn to see the world in a different light. I hope your perceptions grow broader, brighter, and more complete. I hope any anxieties of your mind settle and peace takes their place. I hope you will take time to breathe and enjoy every moment, especially the painful ones. They are the little reminders about what is most important.
I hope you experience the best of days, the warmest of nights, the coldest mornings saved only by a hot mug of steaming black coffee and I hope you can manage to stay dry during the afternoons where it seems like the rain will never stop drowning the street. Don’t worry about getting wet; it’s going to happen.
All of these moments are the ones you will remember, especially the difficult ones that test and try your patience. Learn to be still. Accept the worst. If everything happens for a reason, then even the bad stuff must be leading us somewhere (hopefully, somewhere better). If nothing happens for a reason, then why bother trying to live a reasonable life? Either way, you win. Of course, losing doesn’t always feel like winning. As they say, we can only see the brightest stars at night.
I hope you will travel by plane, train, and automobile. I hope you see beautiful lands that inspire your soul to grow more profound. I hope the world will test your heart to courageous new depths that you’ve never considered exploring. I hope you will give up trying to stay individually afloat like so many others and instead choose to drown in scenic seas of serenity and universal splendor.
Concentrate, focus, and always try to pay attention.
I know you will try your best. You always do. Even at our worst’s, we are as good as we can be at the present moment. Remember this.
I hope you feel the weight of the world and let it go. I hope you feel light as a feather and resist the ease of floating away. Staying grounded presents the hardest challenge for dreamers and those who choose to be deeply-rooted can never break free. Find the middle.
Never stop questioning. Forget knowing all the answers.
Being wrong is indefinitely more valuable than being right. We are almost always wrong. Even a right man knows the boundaries of knowledge and the extent of his ignorance. Educate yourself.
Whatever happens will happen. It is happening.
Whatever happens, I know you will be okay. You always are.
Whatever happens, I will be right beside you the entire time. Don’t worry.
This I know.
I never knew anything before I met you.
But, now I know you.
You have given me one of the greatest gifts in the world: hope.
My wish is to return the same.
I hope to be with you forever.
I hope to grow with you, alongside you, underneath you, and closer into you.
I hope we merge.
I hope for we, not I nor my.
I hope our dreams come true in time.
Most importantly, I hope to always be there for you when you need me and give you space when you don’t.
I love you.
Happy Birthday, sweetheart!
I hope you had a good one.