Optimism
My kids bought me this gorgeous print (above) painted by artist Abbey Lossing for Mother’s Day titled “Motherhood.” It captures it all: the closeness, the reading, the hint of nature, the artwork that it is, the racial ambiguity of the subjects, the abandoned sippy cup on the high shelf, the bold colors that match my interior walls in my home. Perfection.
Optimism.
That’s what I felt when I looked at this picture. That’s the emotion missing from our daily lives right now.
The radical choice today is not skepticism or cynicism. It doesn’t take much insight to be appalled by political parties or news media. It’s easy to hate—to feel superior through anger and judgment, to believe in our own thoughts more than our fellow human beings.
What courage it takes to be hopeful. What faith it takes to be optimistic!
Human beings are complex bundles of needs. If we’re lucky, we begin our harrowing journey as a small child cuddled on a beloved lap, paging through picture books, with oceans of hope for a better tomorrow. I still believe that even the people who see the world differently than me want that too.
And when they don’t appear to, when they act in inscrutable ways, perhaps it’s because something went wrong all those years ago.
We have the chance to fundamentally alter next year and the decades ahead by the act of being a loving optimist, especially as we raise our children.
That’s motherhood: faith in human beings to become decent people.
This post is originally from Instagram and @juliebravewriter is my account there so come follow along for more conversations like this one!
