i have a friend called Hope
and she is the most wonderful friend
that anyone could ever have.
she gives me something to look forward to,
a reason to live,
a song to sing,
a poem to write,
a story to pen,
and she does such a marvelous job of
influencing and underlining the
chapters of my life.

and Hope,
well, she doesn't stay put in one place,
and she's always with me
like the loyal sidekick who tags along at
every great adventure,
whether it be on the high blue seas of life
or in the tiny details like shared glances
in the coffee shop
across two cups of now-cold coffee
talking about Shelley and Keats.

but Hope,
sometimes she lets me down.
she is loyal and true and always faithful,
but sometimes i find it hard to believe in the
truths that she whispers into my ear.
or rather
i do believe her,
wholeheartedly,
full heartedly,
with every ounce of my beating heart-
and like all good friends do, she fails me
sometimes-
often -
but it is never simply never.

and sometimes i feel like
turning away from Hope when she
reaches out to me.
because sometimes her cousin Disappointment
comes around to visit and
oh, how they are at odds with one another!
they fight often and i cannot tell you who wins
until the end, until the very end,
when i awake and find one of them sitting by my side.

Disappointment says to me
(some days, some days when she wins out)
that perhaps Hope isn't such a great friend to be around.

and Hope replies sardonically
(most days, most days when she wins out)
that Disappointment isn't a role model either.

well
i have a friend called Hope
and sometimes she lets me down
and sometimes she keeps me afloat
and some days she glows at the truth
and some days she glosses with lies-
but never does she aim to deliberately hurt me.
Disappointment comes and leaves,
but Hope always stays.

i have Hope
and though that's not saying much-
that's saying enough.

-July 14, 2012

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