Desperate Times

Desperate Times
Winston Churchill refused to give up, even during the worst days of the Nazi Blitz of London, saying, "Lost causes are the only ones worth fighting for." Fei Meng
Jeff Minick
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When I recently opened a book of meditations given me by a friend, this line jumped at me from the page: “Desperation is better than despair.”

At first, this comparison confused me, as both desperation and despair seem synonyms for hopelessness. But as I thought it over, the distinction between the two became clear to me. Despair is the complete loss of hope. The night is black, there’s not a trace of moonlight, and dawn is never coming. The man or woman truly in despair has arrived at the end of a path, from which there is no turning back, and the way forward has vanished in a dark, impenetrable wood.

Jeff Minick
Jeff Minick
Author
Jeff Minick has four children and a growing platoon of grandchildren. For 20 years, he taught history, literature, and Latin to seminars of homeschooling students in Asheville, N.C. He is the author of two novels, “Amanda Bell” and “Dust on Their Wings,” and two works of nonfiction, “Learning as I Go” and “Movies Make the Man.” Today, he lives and writes in Front Royal, Va.
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