Do I even struggle with hope? How deep am I into hopelessness? Or are there specific areas that are unique to me at this stage in my life? Take a test, and find out for yourself!

Why even hope? What’s there to gain if I do, or to lose if I don’t? Unless I buy into it, there’s no point in investing in it.

Will I run out? What if the losses overtake the gains? What if I am in that situation right now? Do I still have hope? How to measure so I know I am in the “right track?” Can gaining be a daily, moment by moment experience?

By learning how to count! To a grateful spirit, there is no lack! It also helps to not label any situation as a major loss or a definite gain because it is really a matter of perspective. Who does the measuring? What in my success rate at the interim? What is my ultimate basis to say one matter is a gain or loss, and how do I ensure I gain more in life?

So many well-meaning efforts, but the “road to hell is paved with many good intentions!” Let’s get practical and methodical and explore steps to take to move forward with loss, not ignoring the unique applications to as many individuals and acknowledging that each situation will have a unique appreciation and application. Still, what is relevant to you? Or your family and company perhaps! Diagnose and prognose!

Beyond conceptual, let’s get personal. What losses are you experiencing today? Or perhaps, what losses of yesterday still impact you today? The key is to know – to apprehend fully – what losses we are experiencing, or still carrying perhaps, and to “accept” them as they are – to take them in “without difficulty and “freely” – so we are in a good grasp of our present reality. That which is seen – not the unseen - can be reflected upon and improved, as necessary.

Loss is a part of life, of every life, and that includes yours. How can there not be loss, if we want gain? Gain can only be achieved and measured if it takes something from somewhere else. Even with the abundance mentality, someone’s gain means a flow, or a loss, from somewhere else. Besides, who says loss isn’t good? Loss of pain, loss of waste, loss of darkness are all “good gains.” So, have you accepted loss as a part of your life today?

The thrill of overcoming, of getting past the darkness, of making it into the light.  But for how long shall we stay there? When in moments of glory “in earth as it is in heaven,” the question arises: how shall we hold on to the light, and for always?

It can be overwhelming. If not for me, for friends and colleagues around me. What about nights that last longer than anticipated or hoped for, with no signs of change anytime soon? What about pains and hurts that cut so deep we wonder if we can even recover? At times it can be so heavy, so burdensome, so dark…what about those times, Anthony?

Ok, so I know why there is darkness, and I am convinced there is more than enough light to stamp out the darkness in my life and in the lives of others. Can we move from Why and What to How? How do I move towards the light, or perhaps, move from where I am now? Here’s to “seeing the light!”