Frodo: "I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened!"As the calendar year winds to a close, and during the darkest days of midwinter, the temptation to lose hope, wallow in nostalgia, or indulge in remorse, can become monstrous and real.
Gandalf: "So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides evil."
As we think back on the past, and resolve toward the future, it is important to remember that the antidote to fear is not courage per se -- the remedy for fear is faith. Faith that the Good, the True, the Beautiful are also at work in the world. This is a mystery.
Fix it firmly in the mind and heart. Practice it. Drill it. There are other forces at work in this world besides evil. We win, they lose. I read it in a book.
