12 publishers rejected her manuscript before Bloomsbury grudgingly took a gamble on a book about a young magician. Its author was a single mother living on welfare support. ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ changed her life – and enhanced the lives of millions of readers.
Hollywood legend Morgan Freeman was 50 when he became an icon of the silver screen. Before that he worked in the US Air Force; as a children’s entertainer and as a stage actor. He won an Oscar at the age of 67.
The world record for the most driving tests ever taken before passing is held by a lady in South Korea. She passed at the age of 69. It was her 960th attempt. Her motivation? To better protect her family business selling vegetables – and a desire to drive her grandchildren to the zoo.
The thing that unites these three people – and thousands upon thousands of others who have achieved their dreams – is that they had goals. And they had hope.
The word hope might be mistaken for naïve optimism, for blind faith, or for simply “crossing our fingers” and waiting for things to improve. But true hope is a dynamic, courageous and transformative force that fuels action, sustains resilience and gives meaning to struggle.
In the words of the American writer, Rebecca Solnit:
“Hope is not a lottery ticket you can sit on the sofa and clutch, feeling lucky. It is an axe you break down doors with in an emergency.”
In this part of the world, we are fortunate to enjoy incredible opportunities for which we should be daily grateful. Equally, however privileged we are, life is unpredictable.
We each face setbacks, losses, disappointments. Without hope, these moments can feel final. But hope reframes them—not as endings, but as chapters in a larger story.
As the great Revd Dr Martin Luther King once observed: “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” King’s words are a masterclass in emotional strength. Disappointment is real and a part of life. But hope reminds us that pain is temporary and failure is fuel. As I said to the School during last Wednesday’s assembly, failure is a teacher, not an undertaker. Hope doesn’t erase difficulty — but it can transform it. It gives direction to our efforts and dignity to our failures. It’s the compass that keeps us moving, even when the path is unclear.
As an Arsenal fan, I hope that we win the Premier League this season. Finally. I can action this hope by supporting the team. However, there are limits to hope. It should not become delusional. My childhood hope that I score the winner for the Gunners in the FA Cup Final is unlikely to come true. There’s no point fuelling that one. However, I could, for example, campaign for professional football to share more of its wealth with good causes.
The great campaigners in history, have been willing to ‘be the change they wanted to see in the world’. Malala, Ghandhi, Martin Luther King. The people who make change happen are endlessly hopeful.
The enemies of hopefulness are despair and cynicism.
Teddy Roosevelt, who served as the 26th president of the US, cautioned against the “cheap temptation” to be cynical. “The poorest way to face life is to face it with a sneer”.
We don’t really do sneering at Shrewsbury, I’m glad to say! We are participators in ‘serious fun’. We reflect on what went well; we consider how best to improve. We do not retreat to the sidelines, criticising.
In one of the most stirring pieces of writing, Roosevelt urges hope and action, over cynicism and despair:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat…”
Powerful stuff indeed.
In her excellent book, How to Build a Girl, the marvellous Caitlin Moran also writes against the temptation to recline into lazy cynicism:
“When cynicism becomes the default language, playfulness and invention become impossible. Cynicism scours through a culture like bleach, wiping out millions of small, seedling ideas. Cynicism means your automatic answer becomes “No.” Cynicism means you presume everything will end in disappointment.
And this is, ultimately, why anyone becomes cynical. Because they are scared of disappointment. Because they are scared someone will take advantage of them. Because they are fearful their innocence will be used against them — that when they run around gleefully trying to cram the whole world in their mouth, someone will try to poison them.”
We do have to be savvy; street-wise. Not every individual is trustworthy; not every organisation is benevolent. But, the default must surely remain with hopeful optimism.
The great Maya Angelou once said: “There is nothing quite so tragic as a young cynic”. Agreed. This place, this school, is the least cynical place I’ve ever worked. On the whole, I think this is because our School encourages a constructive, hopeful approach to life. That it is better to get stuck in, than to stand on the side-lines and comment; that you get more out if you put more in. That it is the creators, the optimists, the constructors, who make a difference. That nobody ever put up a monument to a critic.
There is nothing more hopeful than youth. And no time more hopeful than the beginning of a new chapter of our lives.
Yet, our children are growing up in world of exceptional complexity. The online world is full of possibility – for good, for learning, for connection. Equally, the negative influences and gloom-mongers can spread fear and anxiety. We need to protect and equip the young to manage this mixture of messages. To tell fact from spin; to interpret the world with critical intelligence; to live with optimism that is grounded in pragmatism. How do I live a good and full life? Hope is the fuel. Virtues, the road map.
In a world that sometimes feels chaotic, divided or uncertain, hope is not a luxury—it is a necessity. It is the quality that keeps us grounded; the energy that keeps us moving and the light that keeps us believing – in ourselves and in others.
The great Emily Dickinson offers a memorable avian image for hope:
“Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul—and sings the tune without the words—and never stops at all.”
Hope is persistent. It sings. It endures even in storms. And it never stops.
However fortunate we are, life is not always straight forward. Certainly, we are incredibly lucky in this particular place to be surrounded by opportunity; by good people who share a common purpose. That said, not every day is a cake-walk. We grow through challenge; we will each have to face down adversity at different stages of our lives: “we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” [1 Peter]
The beginning of a senior school journey, is one of the most wonderfully hopeful times in life. Whilst we don’t want to wrap our children in cotton wool, we do want to nurture and grow them towards independent life in a world of great complexity and opportunity. School is both a sanctuary and a training ground.
As we cultivate the Salopian virtues of wisdom, courage and kindness; integrity; self-mastery and spirit – it is my fervent hope that the distinctive energy and participative optimism of the Salopian community will inspire them to find their path and achieve their personal bests. I celebrate the power of hope—not as a passive feeling, but as a healthy mindset that leads to action.
Here’s to positive engagement; to thinking for ourselves. Here’s to resilience and bouncebackability; to making change happen from the inside – for the good of ourselves and the good of others.
Here’s to hope.
Because hope is contagious. Because with hope, almost anything is possible—even if it takes 960 attempts.
Leo Winkley: Letters From Shrewsbury 