Welcome to my website, an interactive collection of my personal and intimate reflections on what it takes to hold on to hope in a season where that feels more important than ever.
On the day of my birth I was given “Hope” as my middle name. According to family lore, a nurse walked into my mother’s hospital room to complete my birth certificate and asked “What is this child’s full name?” My mother, who was alone at the time, answered “Dana Robinson.” The nurse responded, “And her middle name?” “She won’t have one”, answered my mom. “What?” snapped the nurse, “Every child needs a middle name!”. My mother, weary from her cesarian surgery and feeling intimidated by this powerful force at the foot of her hospital bed, grew flustered and said: “Well then, name her Hope.”
It wasn’t an entirely random decision, as Hope was the name of my father’s recently deceased mother, but, as I grew up I was always puzzled by my mother’s impulsive choice; She had always had a challenging relationship with her mother-in-law, and I wondered why she had given me, even under pressure, a name fraught with mixed emotions. As a child I wasn’t sure I liked the name. Compared to the more trendy middle names of classmates, I felt saddled with an identity that seemed old-fashioned and dowdy. Luckily, over time, I learned to accept, and finally appreciate, the simple beauty of a word that held such promise. I always wanted to grow into someone worthy of all that “Hope” implies, and it’s probably not a coincidence that I ended up choosing a professional path thats’ sole purpose is to inspire hope in others.
The essays compiled in this website are my personal reflections on hope, in a season when to live in hope feels more important than ever. Many arise from my personal experiences walking The Camino de Santiago, and on The Pacific Crest Trail. They represent my personal journey inward, and include the questions I ask myself as I reach for an empowered journey forward. Thanks for joining me as I continue to walk, and to reflect. If you feel inspired to be a part of my walking and reflecting community feel free to contact me and share insights of your own, and, as always, “take what you like, and leave the rest.” ———Dana Hope
