It doesn’t take much: an invitation to an informal interview, a check-in from a stranger in China, a command to appear for a fitness test. Hope is the fuel for imagination. I could teach people how to teach employees to fry chicken, help automate mapping software for utilities, teach conversational English, or become a deputy sheriff.

We can spread hope around with an encouraging word or a smile. I’m not sure it is changing the world, but a little hope changes my thoughts and outlook, which is my world.