My friends, we meet at a crossroads—not just for America, but for the world.

We live in a time of uncertainty, where old alliances are tested, hard-earned progress is threatened, and reckless hands toy with history as if it were theirs to rewrite. Tariffs rise, land is eyed as conquest, and the world watches as moral leadership is traded for short-term power plays.

But let us not be mistaken—this is temporary. No single leader, no single moment, can erase the deep currents of justice, progress, and unity that have been forged through generations.

Robert F. Kennedy once stood in the darkest days of apartheid South Africa and spoke of “Ripples of Hope”—small acts of courage that, when gathered together, can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and division. Those ripples are rising again.

The moral leadership of the United States is not just about America—it is about the world. And when America forgets its highest ideals, the world feels the tremors. But history has shown that America does not stay lost forever. When it drifts, it corrects course. When it stumbles, it finds its footing. And when it is at stake, its better angels rise.

This is not a moment for knee-jerk reactions or radical swings. This is a moment for patience, wisdom, and relentless resolve. Because how we respond to chaos is just as important as the chaos itself.

History does not belong to the loudest. It belongs to the most enduring. It belongs to those who, in moments of doubt, still believe. Those who, in the face of darkness, keep the flame of hope alive.

This world has faced times like these before. Times when greed and division threatened to pull us apart. But each time, from the ruins, the forces of decency, justice, and unity have gathered once more.

We must remember: The work goes on. The dream will never die.

No single leader defines us. No setback—four years, eight years—defines us. The world is watching, but more importantly, the world is waiting.

Waiting for America to remember itself.

And it will.

Because the better forces are already rising. The ripples of hope are already moving. And when the tide turns—as it always does—it will not just be a return to normalcy, but a resurgence of leadership, guided not by fear, but by wisdom. Not by division, but by unity.

So do not despair. Do not surrender to cynicism. The moral arc of history bends because people push it forward. And together, with patience, with courage, and with conviction, we will do just that.

Because the work must go on. The dream will never die. And the best is yet to come, if this current chapter is over and done with.

Paul Alexander Wolf.