My nephew and his wife from halfway around the world, just had a baby. In a noisy world with many fighting for the acceptance of new ways, this may be considered a brave choice. And every once in awhile, I’m part of a conversation where folks question why anyone would have a baby now when humanity continues to struggle so mightily at getting it right. And more often than not, unyielding hope leans in and helps me push back real hard on that mindset and the fear attached to it. For now, I’m choosing to notice and learn from the 8lb miracle that is before my eyes by way of a video chat. He’s fresh from heaven and outfitted with the truth that we all lose sight of sometimes – we are miracles and fully equipped to live out that truth. As soon as we emerge from momma’s body, we fight to live because we inherently know that living out the miracle of who we are and what we are meant to do, is our birthright. And when the injustice in our world makes it hard for us to create a meaningful life here on earth, we make a lot of noise and things – rightfully so – can get real messy. Just like the cues and lessons found in nature, new life fights to make its way in this world, live out its purpose and become beautiful reflections of love. Rough weather, choruses of protest against hate, the single plant that makes it way through concrete, a squawking baby crying to be fed or the single voice that perseveres in daily acts of resistance against injustice, does so in attempt to get our attention and make things right. When people mess with the planet and our ability to live out our birthright and give us what we need to survive, there will be noise. So, if the world is in flux because the brave are fighting for their right to live and love freely, and the planet is making a lot of noise because it’s fighting for its life too, then let the upheaval begin. It’s what needs to happen to get our attention and spur us on to get it right. That’s what a baby would do.

If you need a break from the noise that comes from the creation of a new life and new ways, then recover and show up again when you’re rested so you don’t burnout and lose your voice. Remember – babies are the ultimate manifestation of hope. They need naps too so they can rest and then continue to make noise again when something is needed for their survival. Hope screams “I’m here, I’m not leaving and I’ve got a job to do” and continues to make noise because it’s always aware of what could be. New life remembers it’s a treasure trove of gifts that got filled to the brim while it waited in heaven for its big debut on earth untainted by those on earth who attempt erase that knowledge. Hope shines a light on our treasure troves, believes in miracles and the power of connection too. It’s why sunrises and baby giggles have the power to connect by way of wonder and love, becoming the perfect fuel to sustain us as we muddle through those life moments that feel really hard. It’s hope that pushes a sculptor to approach rough granite and fight through layers of hard rock because she knows there’s something even more miraculously beautiful than what she sees and it’s always worth fighting for. Pummeling stone gets loud, messy and hurts but the sculptor doesn’t give up because she believes in unearthing what could be. She simply dons protective gear and deals with all the dust and debris that flies while she creates. She gets tired, frustrated and cries when things don’t go as planned but she doesn’t stop until she gets it right. She keeps at it because she has to uncover what her mind and heart know as truth. That what lies deep inside the rough stone – a new creation, a new perspective and a physical revelation of the Divine in this world is always tucked somewhere among the debris.

We all know what it’s like to stand in the dust surrounded by messy diapers. That’s what happens when you hang out with the Divine in a room called Hope mining for miracles, freedom and love. Questioning, scrutinizing and picking apart all the layers of injustice and pain embedded in the fabric of our world and families gets messy. But we wouldn’t put ourselves through that if we didn’t have hope in ourselves and each other. Sometimes it’s hard to feel hopeful when pain weighs us down and we easily slip into the dark space of cynicism. Crawling out from under the heavy blanket of negativity and hopelessness is no easy feat. Injustice and pain are the thorns embedded in the fabric of that blanket and army crawling out from under that is going to hurt. Even when we choose thoughts and behaviors that are not serving us to get out from under, this is a form of screaming and crying and not giving up. It’s how we adapted given our life circumstances and how our body and mind accommodated to escape the pain. Hope reminds us that we have the ability to develop new ways of being seen and heard if we just keep digging and unearthing what could be. Flowers grow in the desert despite drought, dry soil and rough terrain. It can’t be easy busting through all that. But its mission is stronger and much more formidable than what it has to push through and it’s fueled by hope. A miracle’s job is to shine and work with other miracles in the terrain because it inherently knows interdependence is part of what keeps the ecosystem alive and working for all creatures. It pushes, questions, breaks down, moves ahead with what’s working and unloads and unlearns what promotes harm. When you stop witnessing this struggle and you stop making noise, then you’ve lost sight of hope. Exhaust every resource you have to pull yourself out of the tar pool of apathy and hopelessness and immerse yourself in the sweet water of joy and wonder. Go find a baby and observe how the tiniest and seemingly most powerless creature holds the whole world in their hands because they are fresh from love, amazing beacons of light and making noise because they know they matter. They remind us to fight and live for what they embody and that, right there is real power. It’s a brave choice called hope.

Questions/activities to ponder or good journal prompts!

1. Recall one of your first memories of “making noise” even if the noise you made wasn’t loud or wasn’t the best way to serve you or others, reflect on why you did what you did? Was hope involved whether you were aware of that or not?
2. How do you discern if how you exercise disrupting a pattern of thoughts/behaviors to work towards a better way actually serves you or others?
3. When were you that single plant fighting its way through concrete? What did that feel like? What did you learn about yourself and others?
4. What does hope teach us? How do you foster it in others?
5. Explain how you see all living things in their time here on earth as living proof that hope is in all of us and an integral component of who we are. Use the opposite meaning of hope in your contemplation.