Sharing my passion for handcrafted jewelry, paper making, and living a creative life.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Hope is not a Goal

I love making plans and setting goals for myself.  It makes me feel like I'm in control.  The reality is, I change plans and goals as often as I make them but I'm in control of that, too.  I like control.  I'm not particularly good at just letting things happen, although things will happen whether I let them or not.  I can't control everything.

I've been having a difficult time lately coming to grips with some things in my life that are not within my control.  I can change things about myself but I can't change anyone else and I find myself putting too much faith in hope.  Of course one of the problems with hope, is that you have no actual control over what it is you are hoping for.

Occasionally I buy lottery tickets because I hope I will win the jackpot and be instantly wealthy but I have absolutely no control over the outcome.  I can, however, control how much money I will plan to set aside toward my goals.

Another problem with hope is that you can actually start to believe that what you are hoping for is a goal that you have the power to achieve.  How many people buy lottery tickets but don't save any money because in their heart of hearts, they really do believe that someday they will win the big one?  Hope can be deceptive and it can keep you from doing the things that you can control.

I'm not saying that hope doesn't have merit.  Sometimes hope is the spark that lights the fire under your butt to get you out of bed in the morning.  I'm learning the importance, though, of keeping hope in perspective.  If I continue to make my goals and my plans and create the life I want regardless of anything else that may or may not happen, I may even find, someday, that what I have is better than anything I might have hoped for.

10 comments:

  1. Liz-Anna, I wish that you are feeling better day by day. You know, during my life I have pretty much learned that I can't control everything. I have learned to trust on life and on the positive power of chance. So many times good things have happened to me just like that, by a co-incidence. I try to remeber that "Life will carry you". Keep on hoping, Liz-Anna - one day everything will be better.

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  2. LizAnna ~ thank you so much for your very personal post. All that you said about hope and control are true for me too. My illness taught me that I have less control than I'd like to. This was a big lesson ... also another big one learning I can't control other people. I used to try really hard, only to fall flat on my butt. It takes a lot of courage, not only to go through what you are going through, but to share it with others. May each day bring you closer to "better than anything" day.

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  3. Thanks so much everyone, for all of your kind thoughts and support. It means a lot to me.

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  4. What beautiful art and words- a reflective post that speaks to us all!

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  5. yes! as long as hope leads to movement, it's great. but hope all by itself isn't as good.

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  6. stunning pics on your blog by the way!

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  7. Beautiful words Liz-Anna. I needed that.

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  8. The last sentence of this post was a mouthfull. Good post...

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