I grew up in Puerto Rico, and we commonly refer to the grasshopper insect as an esperanza. Esperanza is the Spanish word for hope. An artist named Jaime Rodriguez Crespo made an art installation called Phototaxis which included a lamp to attract grasshoppers, as they are drawn to light. The installation was described as a “large-scale good luck charm, a way to attract hope into our lives” (“Jaime Rodríguez Crespo PHOTOTAXIAS” in Museo de Arte y Diseño de Miramar).
Hope Is More Than Luck
Certainly, one does not need to “attract hope” when the source of hope offers Himself to us, walks with us, and illuminates our path. Our relationship with God -- rather than “luck” -- is the true wellspring of hope. However, there is something beautiful and true about hope’s connection to light. Jesus reveals to us:
“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).
Lighting the Way
We share hope with others by walking towards the light of Christ and allowing Christ to shine His light through us. Giving and receiving hope is like spreading a flame from candle to candle. Like hope, the flame is not “given away,” but shared and multiplied. The saints lit their flame of hope from the eternal light of Christ, and generously shared what they had been given with others.
“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” - St. Francis of Assisi
Lessons from a Grasshopper
In reflecting on how one can share hope with others, I am drawn to the grasshopper’s movement -- the way it launches itself forward, hopping from place to place. This calls to mind the other widely used term for grasshopper in Spanish, saltamonte, which literally translates to ‘mountain jumper.’ Hope is dynamic and is not deterred by mountains -- or whatever shape the obstacles in our lives may take. May we ‘hop towards hope’ in the valleys and mountains of our lives, to receive and spread the light of Christ.
Coralys Quintero Muñoz is a happy wife living a happy life. She attends Mary, Mother of the Church Parish where she teaches Confirmation with her husband Daniel. She works as a Mental Health Clinician.
Answering Christ’s call, Pilgrim Center of Hope guides people to encounter Him so as to live in hope, as pilgrims in daily life. See what’s happening & let us journey with you! Visit PilgrimCenterOfHope.org.
