See also: Rollins, Henry – “My optimism wears heavy boots and is loud.”
Optimism gets a bad rap as blind, passive acceptance of the way things are, or rose-tinted, hippy-dippy silver lining seeking that rejects the reality of bad situations.
I don’t see it that way. Optimism is the bone deep faith that you will survive what’s happening. It’s the willingness to seek out and cultivate what’s best in people, so that it grows and overtakes what’s worst. It’s the belief that a difficult road will be worth taking, or a that a difficult choice will matter. It’s looking for other solutions when your path is blocked, instead of sitting down and giving up. It’s finding ways to live — and even thrive — in the worst of the shit, because why waste the only life we’ve got?
Optimism drives action. It fuels growth and change and survival. It’s what has kept me going through failure, heartbreak, illness, and life-or-death danger. It’s what I need (and maybe what a lot of us need) right now.
The world might be on fire. Let’s dance and fight and do our fucking best anyway.