[Dycore]

A prisoner survived many years in his dark cage with only a small ray of sunlight entering. That's where he found his strength. By focussing on that ray of sunlight while being well aware that he was a captive.

He wanted to get out of that dark cold space because he knew that there was this warm beautiful sunlight outside that he might once see again. That's what gave him the courage to start digging a tunnel with a little spoon, which took him more than half his life.

This is optimism.

Optimism is not peacefully sitting in a cell and telling yourself that it's really not that bad because there is a little sunlight entering.

This is called stupidity.

An optimist is not afraid to face the dark because he knows there is sunlight out there. An optimist does not ignore the dark by thinking only of the sunlight.

In our society, it is often said that one should remain optimistic. However, the misinterpretation of the word has become a plague.

We do not really notice that the darkness is slowly taking over the last remaining sunlight.

Start digging your tunnel!

[mikema63]

Nothing about this strikes me as spiritual.

[Dycore]

What are you? A stalker? Does it really matter if the text was placed under the right topic?

[Hong Wu]

I think OP is on the right track here and I appreciate his post. Maybe people have different conceptions of spirituality. It's just our nature that it's easier to hope when you have a conception of how things might work out. I say, dig the tunnel, even if it takes a long time and even if it seems unlikely to work

[Godstud]

The difference between optimism and stupidity is your perspective. It's entirely subjective, as well.

[Dycore]

Godstud, of course lad. But isn't everything subjective if we push it through? Might as well say nothing anymore then.

[Godstud]

Not everything is subjective, or a matter of perspective. That's a false conclusion to make.

[Dycore]

I'd like to disagree. I believe your statement is subjective and your opnion only.

[Heisenberg]

I think the OP is on the right lines. I remember reading an article about American prisoners in the Vietnam war which summed up "real" optimism quite nicely. Basically, there were some prisoners who clung to the belief that help was on the way, they were going to be rescued soon, etc. They were the quickest to be broken by their captors. Meanwhile, the "true" optimists were the prisoners who accepted that they were in a pretty dire situation, but trusted themselves to be able to withstand it. They kept their mental strength much longer.

Basically, "optimism" =/= blind faith that everything will be OK.

[Prosthetic Conscience]

What are you? A stalker? Does it really matter if the text was placed under the right topic?

If you placed it under the correct topic, then we'd have more context with which to judge your comments. For instance, you think "we do not really notice that the darkness is slowly taking over the last remaining sunlight". Who are 'we' in this? What country are you from? What do you regard as 'darkness'? Are you a conservative European worried about immigration? A left-wing Indian concerned by the right-wing Indian government? A Filipino appalled at the new president who wants lots of people killed to frighten criminals? An American worried about the level of support for Trump? A Nigerian who sees Boko Haram as a danger to her country?