Love this poem, David. I once heard Terry Tempest Willaims say at a lecture, “Hope is for hostages.” I think part of what she means is that the kind of hope you referred to in your first stanza is impotent, especially in the face of the kinds of existential threats we face today. Hope without action can encourage a mindset of victimhood and powerlessness. Active hope, on the other hand–the kind of hope your poem speaks to in the later stanzas–frees us from that victimhood and impotence, and in fact emboldens and empowers us. It of can also ease our anxiety in the face of political and environmental chaos.
Hope you’re staying cool this summer, in more ways than one.
Full Frontal Faith 
Love this poem, David. I once heard Terry Tempest Willaims say at a lecture, “Hope is for hostages.” I think part of what she means is that the kind of hope you referred to in your first stanza is impotent, especially in the face of the kinds of existential threats we face today. Hope without action can encourage a mindset of victimhood and powerlessness. Active hope, on the other hand–the kind of hope your poem speaks to in the later stanzas–frees us from that victimhood and impotence, and in fact emboldens and empowers us. It of can also ease our anxiety in the face of political and environmental chaos.
Hope you’re staying cool this summer, in more ways than one.
Cheers, my friend.
Rick ________________________________
Yep! So crucial today … and tomorrow. Thank you!