H.O.P.E. #tbt

Acronyms have power:

Have Only Positive Expectations

Hang On, Peace Exists

Hearing Other Peoples' Experience

Heart Open; Please Enter

Help Open People's Eyes

Helping Other People Everyday

Honest Open Positive Environment

Honoring Our Professors Excellence

Helping Others by Providing Encouragement

Human Objective to Protect the Environment

Why read fiction and watch Hollywood movies?  Because they tap into the human experience.  They aren't written by aliens or robots, but fellow human beings.  Movies and books are designed to make money and may therefore follow certain formulae, but the movie Hope Floats was one of my all-time favorites.  Take Harry Connick Jr. for example.  I had his album Come by Me on heavy rotation and I would watch Hope Floats every time I needed a good cry to restore the idea that someday my prince would come.  No matter how bad life gets there's a handsome man to bring you flowers.

I also identified with the character Bernice.  I had to start wearing glasses just after kindergarden, a pair pretty close to these in style.  I remember being inquisitive bordering on annoying.  Now tell me you don't see the resemblence #throwbackthursday

Mae Whitman

Me

I like the idea of starting over.  Every time I went to a new school, it was like I had the chance to begin at the beginning again.  I don't have a problem with making new friends.  I was a brownie girl scout at one time "Make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold."  But I also like the idea of hope.  I like the idea that hope floats because nothing is more troubling than that feeling that you are like a turd at the bottom of a puddle of toilet water.  At least if you float up to the top, you can catch some sun.

I started off this post wanting to write about my plants (garden) but the acronym for H.O.P.E. inspired me to write about other things.  I also like the one about professor's excellence.  My sister sent me a "hey girl" message which really brightened my day.

I like the hidden message to take your time.  When you are in a new or frustrating situation, if you can breathe and take your time with it, eventually good things will come to pass.  If you spend time on educating your students, maybe somehow, some way, you will connect with at least one or two of them.  I'm not sure I connected with every single one of my professors, in fact I'm sure I didn't.  But the most insane ones really reached me.  A more informal definition of insanity is "highly unique, passionate or extreme, including in a positive sense." I saw their passion and their enthusiasm for their beloved subject and it made me try harder to impress them.

I also like the message about open heart and hearing other people's experiences.  That's the way to learn.