This Sunday’s sermon reminded me the the charism I signed onto focuses on Hope and Gratitude. I really needed that reminder. Family, Health, and Abundance are all mine, are my personal proclamation of abundance.

This was another week of lots of bad news. A horrifying presidential debate, Covid-19 numbers going up, and the President hospitalized. Geesh!

I voted this week. What could be more hopeful?

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I saved a few articles in the news to remind myself that there’s good going on, if I just look for it.There is some really good news. And lots of evidence of people doing good things. Here’s some I found this week.

Queen Elizabeth is chill

With all that protocol and stiff upper-lipping, you’d think working for Queen Elizabeth would be stressful. Not according to Bryan Kozolowsi, author of Long Live the Queen! 13 Rules for Living from Britain’s Longest Reigning Monarch.

“By decree of the boss lady at the top, kicking back with a well-deserved tipple is practically a human right.”

Marie Claire, September 2020

Not only does a stint at the Palace practically open any future employment door, but members of the royal staff have access to cheap booze at the royal bar.

According to Bryan, the Queen is Big Lobowski chill, even when staff members are falling-down drunk while on duty.

The Queen is said to turn a relaxed eye away from members of her household who occasionally overdo it on the sherry and shenanigans themselves. Like the time Elizabeth supposedly found a drunk servant sprawled at the bottom of a staircase. Without putting a pearl out of place, she merely requested to anyone within earshot, “Would someone please come and pick Frank up, I think he’s a little under the weather.”

Marie Claire, September 2020

Dr. Fauci is optimistic

Wired25 had to be virtual this year. That didn’t stop them from including Dr. Anthony Fauci, our trusted grandpa and soothing Covid-19 expert. Just to be clear on his opinion on masks, he announced, “I’m the mask guy.”

Mask Guy Fauci points out the 40,000 new infections every day is quite the challenge. Nonetheless, with his five-step approach, he is optimistic.

• Wearing masks uniformly;
• Avoiding crowds;
• Keeping distance;
• Doing things outdoors absolutely much more preferentially than indoors;
• Washing your hands frequently.

We’ve all heard them before. They’re not high-tech. And guess what added benefit these five things have? Less flu! Probably fewer colds, too. Now that’s good news.

Mask Guy Fauci says “This outbreak will end. We will get a vaccine. And if we combine a vaccine with prudent public health measures, we can put this behind us.”

But the main reason he’s optimistic is be cause optimism may be the most important measure to take in combating the disease.

Despair makes you throw your hands up and say, it doesn’t matter what I do, what’s going to happen is going to happen. That is incorrect. It does matter what we do. And if we do it for a while longer, we will look behind us and the outbreak will be behind us, not among us.

Dr. Fauci in Wired Magazine, October 2020

Pope Francis offers hope

Pope Francis issued his third encyclical, “Brother, all.” An encyclical is a pastoral letter addressed by the pope to the whole Church. It contains the Pope’s views on doctrine and teachings.

“Brothers,all” is about 43,000 words, which is a little less than my latest draft. Still, I find the encyclicals quite inspiring, so I intend to read this one.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the current health crisis exposes some problems in our society that we shouldn’t forget. But the pandemic also offers hope in the example of ordinary people helping others in extraordinary ways. He denounces the viruses of racism and radical individualism. He says these things, instead of disappearing, mutate, go into hiding, and lurk in waiting.

Okay, that last part doesn’t sound so hopeful. He goes on to say that now that these things are out in the open, we shouldn’t forget. We should devote ourselves to improving our world and taking care of each other. That’s hopeful. And if we do it, it’ll surely be good news.

What’s on your good news radar this week? I’d love to hear. More is always better.