Hello there,

I’ve spent a good chunk of this month on the couch watching movies that ask nothing of me. This was in the lead-up to new kiddo and the household needed some light fare. Nothing burning up the brain. So lots of romcoms and other odds and ends (We watched Baby Geniuses. Yes, really.) And the whole time, I kept looking for elements of hope and despair.

A story lesson I share over and over is that stories need some balance of hope and despair. Not necessarily an equal one, but a balance that matches the story being told. We need a hero to have the optimism to push forward, but we also need to wonder if they can make it when they question themselves.

Hope is fuel that keeps an audience engaged. Despair is what makes an audience question the ending. A story too full of hope won’t be trusted. A story too full of despair will be exhausting. We must look for a balance; maybe not an even balance, but every story has a bit of both.

I find this concept instructive for story listening too. When we are with someone, how much hope are they sharing? Or are they willing to open up about their despair? When they tell you a story of their life, do they give you both? Or do they brush past.

We can find some of our own most important stories by seeking this out. What moments in our life have we felt a burst of hope only to be dashed by despair? Or when we were deep in it and hope was the only thing that brought us out.

So go looking. And I don’t mean you have to go watch Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (seriously don’t, it’s 0% on the Rotten Tomatoes tomato meter). I mean when you are in conversation with a friend or a colleague or a neighbor or anyone, listen for the hope and the despair. And then tell me what you notice in the stories that you hear by replying to this email.

Until next time,

Steven