Hope is Dead.

It’s becoming a common theme around here to take things you think are important and try to show you why those things are in fact of little value. Nothing new this time.

But first, I hope you are not beginning to feel discouraged. Think of it this way: If you are unhappy in your life, if you ever feel pain, if you ever stress or worry or get upset -- well, doing things your way have not been so good to you, huh? You think hope is important? Or meaning? Or love? Or anything you like to have?

Well, believe whatever you want to believe but if the fact of the matter is that your beliefs have caused you such pain, perhaps it is time to approach your life with fresh eyes. Do not be so quick to hold onto those things which make you unhappy; do not be so quick to think you know. Your life experience can speak quite contrarily.

And so we come to hope.

The message? You can probably guess: drop it. Forget about it. It only makes you unhappy. It is a product of your fears and it controls you. Think about the things you do, the amount of time you spend, all for hope. All for a fantasy of the future.

Why do you need a fantasy? Who told you so?

The message is not that you should stop wanting. The message is if you want something, then go get it. How does hoping help you? How does dreaming help you move towards your goals? Snap out of it. These things do not help you, the distract you, they imprison you, and they cause you grief.

And you are taught to hold on to them as if it is them who help you. How confused. You are like the smoking addict who defends his habit as the only happy moment in his life. But it is the smoking that has made the rest of life miserable. Every waking moment spent anticipating that high, groaning, struggling, waiting for it.

Living in anticipation is not living at all. The life becomes squeezed into only those few moments you have decided are worth more than the rest. Because you hope for them.

Wake up. Life is all around you at all times. There is no need for hope.​
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