120 Reasons to Have Hope

The world is a gloomy place right now. Everywhere we look, there is sadness tracing our smiles, and everything just seems tinted with gray. School has moved online, and it's just not the same. There're assignments piling up in our inbox while we binge Netflix shows and binge eat.

Productivity is just difficult to achieve and it's so much easier to just lie on the couch. The worst part? Everything seems to have lost meaning.

What's the point? Nothing seems to matter anymore. Not grades, not education, not diet, not health, and not mental space. But this is where we get our act together because all of those things are extremely important, and they matter a lot.

It just seems hopeless? Well, nothing is ever hopeless. There are always reasons to have hope.

Always. And if you look hard enough you can find one everywhere, every single day. I made it a mission to find reasons to have hope; I'd look for this hope in the dew on grass blades and at the bottom of a tub of ice-cream.

Initially it was not easy, in fact it was tough to find even five reasons. But as I continued, I just found more reasons and it got even easier to find reasons. I documented this journey of hope and here it is presented to you today.

At first, I thought I would find 10 reasons that we should all have hope. But then the list grew longer. I found hope in small things and in big things and the list ended up reaching this point. At the end of all this, I want you to know that no matter what happens, how bad things can get, there is always hope. You should have hope because:

1. You are alive. I cannot stress this enough. You are here, you are here today and you are here right now. You are a living being in a beautiful body with complex thoughts and opinions and you are alive.
2. You are loved. People in your life love you very much.
3. You have family that loves you. We are all mostly fortunate enough to have parents who love us, siblings, cousins, uncles, aunts who may or may not show affection.
4. You have people who mean family. They may not be blood, but they are like family.
5. You deserve to have hope
6. You found a song that sings with your soul
7. You did something good today
8. Someone did something good to you today
9. You are planning on doing something good
10. You did something good in the past and made memories
11. You smiled at someone today
12. Someone smiled at you today
13. You remembered a memory from your childhood
14. You made a memory that will last
15. You have many days ahead full of new opportunities
16. You have new chances everyday
17. You have the power to make a difference
18. You stand for what you believe in
19. You impacted someone's life and you don't even know it
20. You matter hugely and deeply.
21. You are brave
22. Dolphins can make noises that will melt your heart.
23. There are people who love your hopeful face.
24. There are people who would cherish your smile.
25. Ladybugs exist and they are the most adorable creations.
26. Puppy videos on YouTube.
27. The climate is getting better
28. The population of endangered species is rising
29. The honeybee population is recovering
30. The world is committed to fighting any crisis
31. We have the technology to go carbon free
32. Technology is advancing everyday
33. The internet exists.
34. YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat or whatever your favourite app is exists
35. You have access to the internet which means you have access to infinite resources
36. You can make a change
37. You have interesting and unique hobbies
38. You can work on things you are interested in
39. You can create something beautiful
40. You can talk about your interests to people who are also interested
41. You can bond over common interests and learn new things
42. You can learn a new skill
43. You can pick up a new hobby
44. You can spread awareness about something you believe in
45. You can help bring a change
46. You can help protect the world
47. You have amazing dreams and goals
48. You have achieved some of these goals
49. You are going to achieve the other goals in the future
50. You have far-reaching dreams that you will make a reality
51. Your significant other would want you to be happy
52. There are beautiful experiences in life like:
53. Waking up to someone you love
54. Waking up earlier than anyone else
55. Watching the sunrise with someone
56. Watching the sunrise all by yourself
57. Drinking warm coffee in the early morning
58. Or maybe drinking hot tea or whatever beverage you love
59. The absolute silence in the morning only interrupted with nature and the occasional vehicle
60. The cool morning air
61. The fresh breeze in your hair and the smell of dawn
62. Waking up after everyone else has awoken on a lazy day
63. Sleeping in bed in the afternoon
64. Naps during the evening
65. Naps when you feel tired
66. Naps when you're not tired but you're bored
67. Falling asleep while watching television
68. Falling asleep next to someone you love
69. Falling asleep on someone you love
70. Falling asleep.
71. Sunshine
72. Hugs
73. Cuddles
74. Puppies
75. Kittens and baby cheetahs
76. Videos of babies learning how to speak
77. Videos of you as a baby
78. Videos of your sibling as a baby
79. Pictures of your childhood
80. Pictures of your family
81. Learning family history
82. Understanding your culture
83. Adopting a new tradition
84. Reading history that excites you
85. Reading anything that excites you
86. Finding an amazing book
87. Reading an amazing book
88. Journaling
89. Blogging
90. Sharing an amazing book
91. Eating your favourite food
92. Surprising someone with their favourite food
93. Surprising someone with kind words
94. Surprising someone with a kind gesture
95. Cooking something you've never tried and it turns out amazing
96. The taste of the food you loved when you were a kid.
97. Watching something you used to watch as a kid
98. Watching the sunset
99. Having a picnic
100. Wearing a sweater in cold weather
101. Drinking hot water
102. Staying up all night
103. Spending hours talking to someone and not notice the hours go by
104. Enjoying someone's company
105. Enjoying your own company
106. Loving someone
107. Loving yourself
108. Understanding something quicker than other people
109. The sound of someone's laughter at your joke
110. Eating junk food at midnight
111. Eating healthy food and being mindful
112. Exercising and feeling healthy
113. Sleeping in and loving yourself for who you are
114. Feeling sunshine on your skin
115. Feeling nostalgia
116. Feeling serendipity
117. Feeling sadness, because if you can't feel sad you can't ever feel happy
118. Feeling joy
119. Feeling loved
120. You should have hope because: You are alive