Many See Only Doom and Gloom in this World, but there are Glimmers of Optimism
A war raging in the Middle East. Rampant inflation. Escalating prices. Cyberattacks. Rape on a college campus. Protests. Division. Runaway A.I. Political unrest. We’ve named just a few of our world’s problems. The entire globe seems pretty grim these days, but we remain optimistic that through the morass, chaos and darkness, light emerges.
Here are some glimmers of optimism:
1. Kindness is on the rise. Good souls act every day in a myriad ways—helping to provide directions, paying for someone’s coffee who’s short on cash, giving up their seat on a crowded bus or subway, letting another car into a line, or even doing something quite heroic by rushing forward, risking their lives and saving a co-pilot and everyone else on board a recent flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
2. When there’s injustice, people act immediately, even if it means taking a risk. The staff of a college newspaper didn’t wait for their university or local district attorney to have second thoughts and act with their moral compass when there was a fraternity party and a statement of rape. The editors researched, made calls, and decided they would publish an article on their findings, share names of those who were said to have done wrong and fuel a much-needed debate and action! The headline of their article said it all for their gutsiness: “Cornell won’t; we will.”
3. Nature continues to blossom. Enjoy a cloudless, blue sky during the day or at night gazing at the stars. Warmer temps do arrive, even if not forever. Note new buds on a tree when you thought spring was past. Watch a pod of dolphins surface in the water. Look around; the earth still is an amazing wonder. A walk anywhere and for far less than 10,000 steps is the equivalent of adrenaline for your soul.
4. There are metaphorical bright spots you can initiate. Help an older person by reading to them when they can’t see print any longer, or tutor a young student who needs some help with punctuation and grammar and writing great topic sentences. Share your skills and hear the enthusiasm in your voice when you tell others what you’re doing. It’s far more gratifying than writing another check or using your plastic to donate.
5. Enoy experiences versus buying more stuff. Some of us have been hearing this for years from our millennial offspring who are much more interested in travel and other experiences than lots of stuff, including our ready-to-discard belongings, which they really don’t want. We also read about one couple who came to this idea and gave up their large home for one much smaller.
6. Bring forth your skills. Dig into your toolbox or add some new ones to the list. Consider painting even if you’re not a budding Picasso; many painting and sip classes are fun, and you paint in a group. Consider keeping a journal; you don’t have to be Anne Patchett or a celebrated author to do so, and your thoughts are just as worthy; read some out loud to friends or family. Take piano lessons, an opera class, knit a blanket for a newborn or an older senior, bake a babka or braid a challah and learn how to do any of these tasks by watching YouTube. Don’t think about the finished product but the process, and if it doesn’t turn out as expected, so be it. Even “bad” challah makes “great” French toast, especially if you sprinkle in enough cinnamon and top with fresh fruit, maple syrup or even whipped cream!
7. Use all the access available to finding your roots or any information you might want to know. Isn’t there something you’ve long wanted to know about—your genealogy, who bought your parents’ home and how it changed, what your mom wore on her wedding day, what happened to that cute boy sitting next to you in high school chem class? Use Facebook, Instagram, A.I., Google, research; find out!
8. The arts are booming and accessing them is often free. Enjoy a book from the library, a cable TV show, movie, a concert. Get outside yourself. Nothing may do that more than a wonderful spy thriller, romantic comedy, great music or a painting. Then share what you’ve enjoyed and why.
9. Discover aids to finding those sparks of brightness. Consider reading Michelle Gielan’s book, Resilient Optimism: The Science of Sustaining a Positive Mindset in Tough Times. It may help set you on the right path with some new food for thought, especially now in these challenging times. Many apps are available for free online to meditate, do yoga or Pilates from your home; get the day off to a great start with some healthful mindfulness or exercise.
10. Education and information are available now more than ever before. Libraries, schools and universities offer classes on multiple topics, and many are free. People anywhere can read books, and more people are reading, whether hardback books checked out from a library or eBooks on their tablet. Attend a lecture at a library or independent bookstore; many are also free. Access to learning technology, math, another language on an app, and more proliferates, in great part due to technology. Information is at our fingertips. Many libraries also offer free lectures and often by famous figures such as author and historian Jon Meachem or cartoonist Roz Chast.
11. Organize a Zoom for real faces and voices. Yes, they were commonplace during COVID-19, and many got tired of them. But there’s joy again in gathering online with friends and family in distant locations. Do it once a month with your far-flung family, high school or college buds, former neighbors from a street or apartment building. Suggest a topic, share books and movies, recipes- the sky’s the limit.
12. Discover health advice that keeps improving despite cuts in research. As a result of advances, life expectancy has risen, mortality has fallen, and diseases that once killed people are treatable. Vaccines are often free; check that out. New targeted cancer drugs and treatments offer great hope and optimism. Some find the new weight-loss drugs a miracle, helping to lower their risk for diabetes, stroke and heart disease.
We are a resilient society with so much to be thankful for every day. Look beyond the surface. View life through a lens of optimism without becoming a Pollyanna. It’s amazing what you will see, learn, discover and enjoy.
What is your one daily bright spot?