Active Hope Analysis

Active Hope: My appreciation for Joanna’s work stems from my desire to further understand my roll within the world and to develop tools to both deal with the world around me whilst cultivating the change I want to be within myself. First and foremost, I like that she recognizes, somewhat, a contextualists’ perspective to dealing with life. I do not believe that “all paths lead to the same mountain top” and that there is one essential truth that we are all trying to discover, one ultimate reality. I believe wholesomely in her ideas that each story/each version of reality provides a vantage point in which we see the world from, and/or how we deal with the world around us. I honor my individuality, it has provided me context to deal with the world,

it has given me the strength to recognize myself as important and the humility to trust and honor each persons individual stories as relevant and important. The three stories of our time has given me the opportunity to break up my thoughts, contemplate and reorganize them so that I can better understand them. The great turning offered the greatest insight into courting a limitless approach towards the change I want to be. It takes tremendous courage to fully embody the experience of your own unique nature. It has taken me a long time to understand that whilst I may be intricately connected to “oneness” I am constructed through experience and in-turn my realty is absorbed through this lens. In acknowledging that we are all unique, the idea of purpose becomes clearer and clearer, for with this acknowledgement comes great responsibility. Responsibility to be change you want to see in the world - not through some divine will but rather because that is what I have chosen.

Gratitude, Honoring our Pain for the World, Seeing with New Eyes and Going Forth.

Wow! What more can we ask for. I see these concepts all connected by a giant spider web, each concept with an arrow of light refracting through it, highlighting the interconnectedness of the tools we can use to develop discipline. Discipline is a funny word and often carries negative connotations, to me however, discipline could also be described as practice. With practice, comes skill and developing skills is not something reserved for the rich and famous, it is something we all have access to, if we want. In my eyes, these four concepts constitute skills, skills that we can all learn. What we do with these skills and how much attention, focus and awareness go towards them are what is important, again that boils down to discipline. Gabrielle Roth said, “it takes great discipline to be a free spirit” I feel that this quote fits nicely into the art that Joanna Macy is trying to portray, yes the concepts are easy to understand but with out action, with being the change you want to see in the world, life continues and eventually, before you know it life is over and we sit at the edge of the lake pondering to ourselves “what if I had done that” “imagine if I had just had the courage” “I guess, in another life, I will be more actively involved”. “maybe next time i’ll have more time.” In honoring our pain for the world we can often answer the questions that elude us. These questions often pertain to our purpose on the planet. IE what is my purpose, I believe this question is at the center of many peoples depression in the world. Bringing awareness towards the pain we feel in the world can highlight our purpose. I believe we all have the ability to heal, just to what extend we choose to is what separates us. Imagine a world in service - a world where people recognized their pain for the world and acted upon it. The realization of the time in which you come into the world, the state of global

affairs and the context that has allowed you to be where you are, all linking up, full circle, to provide you with an honest service/purpose to fulfill in the world.