Hope by Natasha Bedingfield

Photo by John Towner on Unsplash

This week has seen incredulously aggressive and childish behaviour by the people who are supposed to be leading our country. It has seen language aimed at dividing people, rather than that which attempts to hear the views of all and unite. It has seen people lacking the decency to be honest or graceful. Yet, I have hope. This week’s song is Hope by Natasha Bedingfield.

I think during a week like this week, it is easy to lose hope. To be angered by the behaviour of others and to indulge the rage that certain forms of language are designed to incite. What better time to think about hope, and the alternative we can create? The opening verse of this song sums up how I’ve often felt this week …

Remember morning always comes. As night surrenders to the sun, no matter how dark it may become, don’t stop your light from shining on.

After the announcement on Tuesday that treatment of parliament was unlawful, I drove into university to give the first lecture for a module I’m teaching on ethics. All the way in I heard angry people phoning in with very different perspectives on the judgement, and I felt sad. Sad that everything, through the encouragement of political soundbites, had to be brought back to whether you wanted to leave Europe or not.

Hearing the anger, it was easy to be drawn in and start to feel that anger myself, but I had a choice. A choice to say no matter how dark circumstances might become, I could let my light shine on.

As I pulled into the university car park, I made a choice. A choice to say I wanted the students to be secure in their own views and values, to be able to practice what they believed, and to be able to do this with grace and hope. As we commenced the lecture, I encouraged the students that there was a different narrative to find. A narrative in which we could disagree with others in the most fundamental of ways, but still treat them with compassion and humanity.

As this week’s song expresses, it’s okay to not know where you’re gonna end, but don’t stop your light from shining on. Whatever the outcome of the political crisis our country is facing, and I’m pretty convinced it doesn’t really matter, what does matter is that we learn how to experience, support and promote difference with love. To learn how to increase our humanity and support of one another.

Thankfully, my students were able to grasp this far better than our national leaders. There is yet hope! There is still people in this country who can act with compassion, hope and maturity.

Lacking hope? Why not consider booking an appointment with the author, Dr Dave Wood.