I Have CF. So what?!: A word about Hope

Hope is a scary thing. Some argue that positivity breeds false hope. That thinking too much on the bright side will only leave you let down. I don't necessarily believe that... but I DO believe in a thing called Rhope... that is Reasonable Hope. Rhope is when you believe that what you are hopeful for can be accomplished if YOU do something about it. Rhope isn't praying for an easy way out, its MAKING an easy way out. Rhope isn't wishing at 11:11 for a miracle, Rhope is believing that you have the ability to produce a miracle. But the most important part about Rhope is knowing that you are human, and your hopes and rhopes and dreams may not come true, but you must have the drive to at least TRY. Thus, Rhope only works in one way, and that is with the equation Rhope+Positivity+Endurance=Success. And Success MUST equal a willingness to try.

Example: I have a chronic illness and I want to be healthy. I can hope that by some chance the genes that have proven damaging in almost everyone just don't happen to work for me.But that isn't reasonable! I can pray every night that my lungs stay healthy... but only I can make my lungs healthy. Rhope+Positivity+Endurance=Success. The positivity comes when I decide that I AM going to be healthy and that I truly believe I can make it happen. The endurance comes when I decide I'm going to TAKE CONTROL of my health to BE healthy. The endurance isn't the physical ability to exercise, it's the mental ability to WANT to exercise to help myself. The endurance is the drive to do my vest and my nebs. The endurance is to get enough sleep, to eat the right things, to stay hydrated, to call the doctor when I know I need his help. The equation is a 3 part process, 1+2+3=6 but if you skip the 2 you only get 1+3=6... and you don't need to know math to know that isn't right. You must have the hope towards a goal, the positivity to know you can accomplish this goal, and the endurance to get it done! Once those are accomplished, you aren't allowed to say you didn't try. And maybe, as hard as you tried, you still ended up in the hospital or not feeling your best, but at least you didn't waste your time with hope. You put in an honest effort and, more often than not, Rhope gets you close to where you want to be.

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