Hope

To hope is to expect, to anticipate, or look forward to. Cultivate a hopeful attitude by assuming there is Power for good in this universe, and you are choosing to cooperate with it. 
Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian (Path of Wonder: A Meditator's Guide to Advent)

In this time of the Christian tradition of Advent, the four weeks before Christmas, instead of just focusing on shopping and getting, we can create a more spiritual journey through this time. On the day that this message is being released, we in the Northern Hemisphere are experiencing the shortest day and the longest time of dark of the year. Already, in the next days we will experience a greater time of daylight. This is a time of year when several different spiritual traditions celebrate the coming of the light of love and peace.  It has been a difficult time in our country and in the world. Many of us are worried about the future. Our hearts ache for those who are suffering. Many of us are saddened because of the social divisions that seem to be getting wider and wider in our own country. The holiday time can be difficult for those who are alone or have family issues.
Yogacharya says, "Cultivate a hopeful attitude." Rather than being pulled down into despair, if we assume there is a power for good that runs the universe, we can remain hopeful and serve life from that place,  bringing the light within ourselves into the world. We can cultivate hope just by noticing the good that is around us. A friend recently told me about an experience she had when she met a young couple in a restaurant. They had a lovely conversation and then they had to leave. When my friend got up to pay for her dinner, she was told that the couple had paid for her. My friend said the kindness they offered gave her hope for the future. Yogacharya O'Brian encourages us to "Feel or imagine that life supports you... Notice what it is like to consciously choose to be hopeful."
Are you experiencing hope at this time and if not, what do you think can you do to cultivate it?