Heartaches and Hopes

The golden poppy, the California state flower, grows between the cement crack in Altadena after the fires.

Heartaches and Hopes

Therefore we do not lose heart. -2 Cor 4:16a

It’s hard to believe summer is nearly over. At the Hur household, we’re savoring this last week of vacation before our youngest heads back to school next Monday. Our daughter has just moved into an apartment on the Westside to begin her graduate studies, and in about a week, Hyun will return to Korea to care for his mother. Part of me (Sue) wishes time would slow down so we could fully cherish these final moments together as a family. Our mealtimes have become a sacred pause in our days—spaces to share stories and reflect on the summer’s highlights. True to Yul’s style, he summarized, “The problems of the world look so big and messed up that you don’t think good things could happen, but they do. You have to look at the bad but not forget the good stuff.”

This summer has indeed been a season of facing the “messed up” and heartbreaking realities—locally, nationally, and globally. ICE raids continue to tear apart our neighbors and church members, leaving many Angelenos and people across the country gripped by fear. Today, hundreds of National Guard troops are being deployed to “clean up” Washington, D.C., the city where our son lives. Just last week, the world marked the 80th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki—a sobering reminder of the ongoing manmade devastation and civilian deaths in Gaza. Some days, it feels like too much to bear.

And yet, even in the shadow of deep and unbearable pain, this summer has also been filled with moments of hope . What has been breaking your heart? Where have you found glimmers of hope?