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Dear Dr. Bird -Question of the Week

Keep the Hope!  Give Yourself a Hand!   

Dear Dr. Bird,

 I heard you speak recently and you gave everyone a “Clapper” and told us to “Give ourselves a hand!” First of all, thank you for your inspiration, our school district is suffering so many cutbacks that it is hard for us to keep our motivation.  I just have a quick question; what’s the secret to “hope,” and what can we do to keep it alive?

 Sincerely, Troubled but not broken

Dear Troubled,

Hope is a habit.  It is not always easy to obtain, and it can be easily lost if we are not careful.  In these trying times, all of us have to continually remind ourselves of our values and our purpose in life.  There are three things that help me.  First, I try to spend as much time as possible with positive people and I try not to obsess on, or hang out, with the petty people.  They have very little to offer other than their misery.  Second, stay in love with the world.  It is a great place filled with a lot of lovely people, and they deserve the best me that I can possibly give them.  As the great author Leo Buscaglia once said, “The opposite of love is not hate- it is apathy.”  Once we become apathetic, we lose all our power over life.  And third (and most important), give away all the things you can make from nothing.  You can create an abundance of love, hope, kindness, patience, and compassion, and you can make these things from nothing!  They don’t require money, possessions, or college degrees.  And the most wonderful miracle is this- you can give them all away, and still have just as much.  In these trying times of economic depression, we have to be certain that we don’t let it result in a spiritual depression.  As Erich Fromm once said, “Give that which is alive in you, if nothing is alive in you, you have nothing to give.”  Keep giving, it’s worth it, stay alive in your heart! 

Dr. Bird