Adsum. I am here.

Committing to the journey

After spending many hours last week doing my overdue bookkeeping (ugh!) and enjoying many travels over the past year (yay!) I was considering joining my husband in retirement. While I love showing up in this online space, the back of the house is way less fun.

I was sharing all this with a friend who is just getting started in the online world, and her response grabbed my attention. She spoke of the compelling need to accompany each other over the next four years. I can’t change what happened in November. I can't fix any of the world’s problems. But I can commit to being here with you, and for you, to walk through whatever craziness and uncertainties rise up.

I am committed to the journey.

I am here.

Adsum.

I found the term “Adsum” in a book by Lyanda Lynn Haupt, Rooted, Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit. While I’m usually more drawn to the crossroads of creativity and spirit, I’m paying more attention to the natural world outside to balance the time I spend tending my inner world. Haupt speaks of the need to define hope as taking responsibility for the future, joyfully and with perseverance in spite of obstacles. And regardless of outcomes. She notes that this definition of hope, and the concept of Adsum, come from the Benedictine monastic tradition.

Photo by Faris Mohammed on Unsplash

How would you define hope?

Hope is not…

… some far off paradise at a future time where all our problems will disappear. Elements of Christian teaching claim that we are all just passing through this life and waiting for our rewards in Heaven. Being completely heaven-focused, however, absolves us of taking action and working for justice today. It ignores our call to bring the reign of God on Earth as it is in Heaven, transforming our world here and now.

… a passive pollyanna stance that buries its head in the sand. If we choose this option, we miss all the good things that will happen, too.

… a blind belief that everything will work out just fine. The good news - bad news is that we are the ones we have been waiting for.

… wishing reality was different than it is. Elements of Buddhist teaching discourages hope because it arises from a sense of lack, and pulls you out of the present moment and into some future moment when all your dreams will come true. It pulls you out of the present moment and into some future moment when all your dreams will come true. While I don’t find it helpful to deny reality, hoping for a better tomorrow can clarify and focus one’s efforts in making that better tomorrow a reality.

Hope is…

… a motivating force fueled by a vision for a just world that pulls you out of complacency and despair. There are actions we can take even if we can’t fix it all.

… according to Pope Francis, "a supremely active virtue that helps make things happen." It is not "a passive virtue, which merely waits for them to happen.”

Hope has her feet grounded in reality, her spirit energized by a clear vision of justice, and infinite compassion for our human bodies, the locus of all the action.

Adopting the stance of ‘Adsum’ may be the best thing any of us can do.

Commit to the journey. Do what is yours to do. Engage when and as you can tolerate. Celebrate the beauty that is in front of you even as the world crumbles.

Both/And.

Overdosing on news and on situations over which you have not control often leads to despair and a feeling of helplessness. Be intentional about what you let into your inner sanctum. Refuel as necessary. And rest. It’s going to be a long four years.