And for all those years, we never talked about the disaster at the recital or my terrible accusations afterward at the piano bench. All that remained unchecked, like a betrayal that was now unbreakable. So I never found a way to ask her why she had hoped something so large that failure was inevitable. And even worse, I never asked her what frightened me the most: Why had she given up hope?

The difference between shallow happiness and a deep, sustaining joy is sorrow. Happiness lives where sorrow is not. When sorrow arrives, happiness dies. It can't stand pain. Joy, on the other hand, rises from sorrow and therefore can withstand all grief. Joy, by the grace of God, is the transfiguration of suffering into endurance, and of endurance into character, and of character into hope--and the hope that has become our joy does not (as happiness must for those who depend up on it) disappoint us.

Montrose leaned forward. “Jacob, what's wrong with you? Why would you want to do this? What kind of husband . . . what kind of man are you?”“I don't know.” Jacob's voice was a whisper. “But before I pledged myself to Annie, I pledged myself to God.”“I hope you know what you're doing.” Montrose glanced back towards the kitchen. In their silence, they heard Annie's low sobs. “I hope it's worth it.

To be cynical is to be distant. While offering a false intimacy of being "in the know," cynicism actually destroys intimacy. It leads to a creeping bitterness that can deaden and even destroy the spirit...A praying life is just the opposite. It engaged evil. It doesn't take no for an answer. The psalmist was in God's face, hoping, dreaming, asking. Prayer is feisty. Cynicism, on the other hand, merely critiques. It is passive, cocooning itself from the passions of the great cosmic battle we are engaged in. It is without hope.

That’s the great thing about hope—no matter your past, no matter your mistakes, hope is the constant force in your heart driving you forward. You fall down. You cry about it for a little while. And then you stand up again. You push forward. You never give up because you believe something good will come. I’m lonely now, but something good will come.Hope is my one healthy compulsion.

I hoped he'd take his dog and drive down to the ocean. I hoped there was still time. I pictured him sitting on the gray rocks with the waves crashing and spraying white foam. Maybe he'd hear something in the roar of the ocean, feel some limitless power, believe that there's something greater. Something more. Maybe his heaven was at the coast, with a dog's head in his lap, with nothing but water and depth from there to the horizon." -Delaney

“And for all those years, we never talked about the disaster at the recital or my terrible accusations afterward at the piano bench. All that remained unchecked, like a betrayal that was now unbreakable. So I never found a way to ask her why she had hoped something so large that failure was inevitable. And even worse, I never asked her what frightened me the most: Why had she given up hope?”

Pansy rolled over and went to sleep, but Petunia stayed awake long after Olga left, and long after Oliver crawled out from under the bed, grabbed some sandwiches, and slipped out the door. She hoped that he was going to Galen and Rose's room, and she hoped, too that he hadn't known she was awake when he had leaned over and kissed her hair. She wanted to savor that touch forever.

“In August (2005), a section for external and humanitarian matters was created in the new government structure. I was put in charge of that section, which included five or six ministries singled out in that (August 2005) decree. When that section was set up, there was hope that those ministers who lived abroad would be able to do their work more or less efficiently and that they would have the opportunities to do their work. However, the past two or three months showed that this plan was unrealistic. Furthermore, the internal situation in the republic, political and military, has changed. So, the (current) decree is aimed at strengthening the role of ministries, ministers, and government officials working at home (in Chechnya). Consequently, the top government leaders will work at home. This was the purpose of the decree.”

“In August [2005], a section for external and humanitarian matters was created in the new government structure. I was put in charge of that section, which included five or six ministries singled out in that [August 2005] decree. When that section was set up, there was hope that those ministers who lived abroad would be able to do their work more or less efficiently and that they would have the opportunities to do their work. However, the past two or three months showed that this plan was unrealistic. Furthermore, the internal situation in the republic, political and military, has changed. So, the [current] decree is aimed at strengthening the role of ministries, ministers, and government officials working at home [in Chechnya]. Consequently, the top government leaders will work at home. This was the purpose of the decree.”