1. There is Hope — updated
© Robbie O’Connell 1998 Slievenamon Music (BMI)
The promised Introduction…1
The inspiration for this song came from the photograph of the “There Is Hope” billboard in Dublin, taken in the 1990s by my photographer cousin, Fionán O’Connell. We have a natural inclination in Ireland to see the glass half empty instead of half full. Given our long history of oppression, it is not surprising. W.B. Yeats, the great Irish poet, put it very well when he said that, being an Irishman, he had an abiding sense of tragedy that sustained him through temporary periods of joy.
The peace process in Northern Ireland began in 1996 and culminated in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Along the way, there were some major disagreements, when the participants walked away from the table, and it all appeared to fall apart. It was one such occasion that prompted me to suppress my natural pessimistic streak and prompted by Fionán’s photo, to choose a more optimistic outlook.
The power of positive thinking has long been an acknowledged force for change although there are many times when it is in short supply. When hypocritical religious leaders spew words of hatred and racist politicians fill the airwaves with vitriolic diatribes, it’s very difficult to maintain a positive outlook. From time to time, I find myself shunning the depressing news headlines but then becoming uneasy in case I am missing something of importance.
Martin Luther King managed to be hopeful when he said, “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Change inevitably happens. Tyrants eventually fall. It may not happen as quickly as we wish but as Cicero wrote, “Where there is life, there is hope.” If we wish for change, we must keep the hope alive.
THERE IS HOPE
© Robbie O’Connell 1998 Slievenamon Music (BMI)
Like crystal crashing on a stone floor
All the plans lie shattered now.
But glass shards tempered in a healing fire
Can take another shape somehow.
Chorus
People say that it's too late now,
The time to change has come and gone.
But I believe there is hope now,
Hope to change and carry on and carry on.
Behind wire fences and by concrete walls
Among the rubble flowers still thrive.
They stretch their heads up to the sunlight
Determined always to survive.
The preacher is quick to quote the bible
But very slow to change his heart.
Words that should bring us together
Are used to keep us all apart.
History books are filled with stories
That tell us when but never why.
And though we can’t find all the answers
We still can keep the hope alive.
Live recording at the Augusta Heritage Irish Week 2007, Elkins, West Virginia
Photo: Fionán O’Connell Photography
Original intro on August 1, 2025: This is the first entry into the Robbie O’Connell Songbook. It’s not the first song I wrote, but it feels timely. The back story is interesting and I will think on it and work on the writing part of this project as soon as we nail down the technical bits and pieces. The first decision was do we make this an audio post and we’ve decided not to because the idea was mostly to provide the lyrics and relevant information on the songs and, secondly, to provide links to various recordings, both studio and live. We are feeling our way to making this work for everyone interested… so, the title is a bit of a double meaning.
Fabulous! Thanks.