by Gary Sacco

Created on: January 05, 2009

The day after Christmas, my life would become different. That evening, my live in girlfriend, of over three years, disclosed that her love, for me, was exhausted. Yes, it was over. In my mind, this parallels the tragic incident of a friend's recent suicide. She'd reached the precipice of utter despair and succumbed. While I'm certainly heartbroken and disappointed, my outlook is rife with optimism. Over the past few days, a quiet peace has infiltrated a previously tense home. I know, in my heart, that something great, or meaningful, will happen tomorrow. If not, I'll wake up the next day, expectant. Hope is life's antidote.

Answers.com defines hope as "looking forward to with confidence and expectation." Yet, in my opinion, it never exists without dreams and aspirations. Most people create visions of living great, productive, happy lives. Hobbes, I feel, is largely incorrect. We don't seek to exist in misery, wandering around in tatters, living in earthen holes, fighting to the death for sustenance.

Citing sporting analogies can be tiresome. However, I think of US Olympic Hockey Coach Herb Brooks, and his naive college kids. That 1980 team embarked on an improbable gold medal run, in Lake Placid, that no sensible fan thought possible. Stunning the elite, world's best Soviet Red Army squad, Brooks' club uplifted a weary nation, plagued by inflation, unemployment and a hostage crisis, in Iran. "Malaise" was the word President Carter used to describe the American psyche at that time. Personally, I recall our JV football team, shocking an undefeated, powerful rival in that season's last game.

Sporting competitions are merely games. There are so many real, everyday, largely anonymous examples of the unconquerable spirit. With great admiration, I've always wondered how a single mom juggles a 40 hour work week and a full college semester. Sleep deprived, and exhausted, that same mom finds time to raise her children. I read about Michelle Obama's MS ridden father finding the courage to rise up, very early to compensate for his disability, dress and get to work, everyday. I think about the scientists searching for cancer's cure. Even in the face of repeated failures, these dedicated men and women carry on.

In every example, hope is the common thread. That mother envisions obtaining a college degree. She'll finally secure a satisfying, well paying job and better provide for her children. That mother will move her small family to a safer neighborhood in a top-flight school

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