Coaxing Hope to Perch
‘Hope is the thing with feathers-That Perches in the soul,’ wrote Emily Dickinson ‘And sings the tune without words- and never stops-at all.’ The last time I used this portion of her poem, it was for someone fighting cancer. (I even used that image for the Kodo board message, the go-to website for well-wishes at work.) the phrase came back as if to remind me to look for hope and call it.
Hope flutters into hiding lately. The church dudes I wrote about yesterday, would say ‘You need God.’ I would reply, “If you’re offering, I am not taking.” No, hope needs to perch on my shoulder naturally, so to speak. I want hope to sit comfortably and want to perch on its own volition. I need hope to perch and sing its tune. We head into winter and it looks like the restrictions on gathering sizes will stay. No Midnight masses will happen, no Christmas Day movie releases, or large Christmas dinners. Friends of mine can’t come home for the holidays and hope needs to come perch and sing because everything feels heavy.
The countdown widget on my phone now has a Winter Solstice countdown. It will be the last day of early darkness, we slowly get more light. Christmas looks different with this knowledge. ‘The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in the land of deep darkness-on them light has shined’ goes the verse in Isaiah. I am ready to accept hope, even during this time, this uncertain time.
The other choice will not do.
