The overall spirit of the United States has risen as we gradually emerge from the pandemic. In the midst of the virus we constantly waited for the end and although we were often discouraged we persevered because of one very important word: Hope!

This word reminds me of a trip in the Adirondacks that I took several years ago. We had left Brant Lake and were passing through some of the most remote and desolate areas of the North country––places with names like Tupper Lake. At one point the road passed through the town of Hope, New York. Located in Hamilton County, in the early years the town was a small village comprised of farmers, sawmills and tanneries. Most of those early occupations have ended and the town now registers a small population in the hundreds.

Approaching the boundary of the town from the south a sign announces that you are now entering Hope. Since I like to explore unknown towns, I was curious to see what the area offered. Although the land is now primarily forest, Hope advertises beautiful nature hikes and the mountains seem to cascade into the river but my interest was in exploring the town itself.

Entering the town I noticed four or five white clapboard houses and then, to my astonishment, a sign that I was now leaving Hope. Four houses, that was the entire town–or, at the very least, all that I could see.

“Entering Hope,” “Leaving Hope”–the town was a tiny area and suddenly I wanted more Hope!

Hope is a crucial part of our life. Hope helped to alleviate the despair of the pandemic and is an important aspect of facing our future, hoping that we can avoid such tragedy in the future.

As long as we have hope we can forge ahead.

Hope. A tiny town. A saving approach to life in the dark times.

Sheltering