Remember Red

“Remember Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” 

The above quote is one of many iconic lines from the movie The Shawshank Redemption. If you’ve never seen it, it’s about a man who was wrongfully accused of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Throughout the plot, we see how he and the other prisoners deal with life behind bars. 

At the crux of this movie is a question: what place does hope have in our lives? 

As Catholics, we often pray for an increase in faith, hope, and charity. And, of those three, hope can sometimes get overlooked. 

When things are going well, hope might not be something that we think about. But, in trials and tribulations, our hope is what waivers. 

But, to truly increase and strengthen our hope, it must be tested. 

In life, we will face desolation and darkness, and in these struggles is when we will find opportunities to hope. 

We once again turn our hope to God, who has the power to heal all wounds, whose grace is enough for all, who created us for Himself.