Pandora's Box

Pandora's Box comes from Greek mythology.  In the story, Pandora is presented with a gift that is never to be opened.  It contains many evils that could destroy mankind.  When the box is eventually opened, everything escapes except for one thing, hope.

Although this story is a myth, there is something positive to be gleaned from it.  In life, we all have our own Pandora's box.  Maybe our box contains dreams.  When we get the courage to open the box, we discover all sorts of challenges and risks that were previously unknown to us.  These challenges cause us pain.  All of our lives we struggle to overcome the challenges that sprung out of the box we opened.  We expend a great deal of energy trying to forget what we opened.  Our nightmares of past memories haunt us as we try to sleep.  Sometimes, we regret that we took the risk to open the box.  Was the price we paid too high?

In Greek mythology, all the bad stuff got out once the box was opened.  Opening the box a second time would have allowed the one item we need in our lives to set us free.  That, my friends, is HOPE.  My point here is that we need to open that box we hid away in our closet and let hope come out.  This means facing the source of our past hurts and troubles.  Hope is waiting for us.  It is stronger than anything bad we let out of the box.  We must be willing to risk opening the box a second time.  Hope needs to come into our lives.  It is like a baseball player who is being asked to face his most challenging opponent, a foe that he has struck out against over and over his entire career.  In order to get that home run, he must be willing to try again.  He must open Pandora's box.  He will never get the big hit if he gives up.

The Greek gods are false, however, hope is real.  It is a gift from the Creator.  It is the one thing that encourages us to keep going, no matter how tough life is.  The greatest prize of all awaits us at the end of our lives.  There is nothing in this world that can defeat us if we keep hope with us.

At the beginning of this year, I opened my Pandora's box.  Hope was waiting for me.  I took it out of the box and made it my theme for this blog.  I am sharing it with you here every day and I promise to keep hope alive with each story I write.  Hope isn't meant to be locked up in a box, it's a gift for you, to serve as your companion as you move forward on your journey.  All you have to do is open the box.