Hope makes a life worth living. Kathryn Britton conducted an interview she entitled, “Looking in the Right End of the Telescope.” We know how difficult life the past 2 years has been. It is so easy for us to look in the telescope 
from the wrong direction only to have our world shrink until it becomes unbearable in its smallness. Loss of hope is like that. Without hope our view shrinks until we see only the boulder in the road impeding our journey and very little of the world around us. Not to mention an alternate path around the boulder.
Hope is essential to growth, health, and happiness. An internet search on the impact of hope on wellness reveals multiple studies which demonstrate the health benefits of hope. So how then do we travel from helplessness and hopelessness to hope? Victor Frankl notes in his writings that the human spirit is defiant in its ability to endure hardship and tragedy. This explains why humans can defy the odds and survive and often thrive, even in difficult situations. But what happens when we lose hope? How do we turn the telescope around to see bigness and not a singular focus on our immediate surroundings? Enter into this picture, family, community, church, VFW, friends, school, clubs, self-help books, professional helpers etc., etc., etc.! Our job is to provide hope. Even the smallest, most seemingly insignificant act can begin the process of turning the telescope around to provide an open, clear view of the world. A smile, a word of encouragement, a letter, a phone call, a cup of coffee, and sometimes a visit with a trained professional can change that view.
Health means…caring enough about the people around us to become knowledgeable about the signs and symptoms of depression and anguish, and then having the courage to have a difficult conversation about hope.
Contributor: Brad Dirks
Kansas State University Research and Extension, and many other organizations, has opportunities for training in recognizing and understanding the struggles that lead to the act of suicide. QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer), Mental Health First Aid, and Farm Stress are Michigan State University Extension programs that are available to help us as we provide hope in difficult times. For more information on these and other available programs, contact: Rebecca McFarland (rmcfarla@ksu.edu), Rachael Clews (rclews@ksu.edu), or Brad Dirks (brdirks@ksu.edu) for more information.
