I recall when I was a teenager, something had stuck out to me and persisted with me as I grew into adulthood. At the time, I had become very interested in what I now regard is the philosophy of Strategy as described by Sun Tzu and Miyamoto Musashi. They talked about this thing called: initiative. If you have initiative, keep and maintain it. If you lose it, work your hardest to gain it back. To my young mind, I didn’t quite understand what that had meant or why initiative was important. It would only be later in life that I would increase my understanding.
I recently picked up chess. I’ve come to learn that chess (like most things) contain lessons that echo life itself. Initiative in chess is achieved when you are no longer reacting to your opponents moves and are able to impose your will and control the flow of the game. When you don’t have the initiative, you are stuck in a reactionary mode searching for an opportunity or a mistake made by your opponent to win the initiative back.
How does this relate to hope? Hope without substance or action is powerless and borders on being delusionary. As Jedi “Where there is despair [I shall bring] hope”. I shall bring – action. Further in the doctrine It is not that we bring hope itself, but the feelings of hope insomuch as to maintain equilibrium in the face of despair. That does not to mean that when we sit in our despair, do not pull out a timer and measure how long we are in despair or wallow within it. We acknowledge our reality and then work to regain the back the initiative.
Do not give up early when things seem to be going bad. Do not allow yourself to become so discouraged that you can’t find your own courage. There is a time and season for everything. However, once all of your actionable items are expended. You’ve exhausted everything you can do. That is when we lean fully on hope and faith. We do not hope that things will go our way or get better; but to be steadfast and calm long enough to witness the change that shall come from accepting our true and authentic reality.
“Fear is a disease;
And hope is its only cure.”
-Star Wars: The Clone Wars Animated Series
