As I write this, the wind is howling across the sky, whipping the trees back and forth, and there is a sense of urgency that I finish this before the lights go out. Evidently, there is a hurricane on the way and I live within its whipping zone.
Without electricity, I can’t upload to the Internet and I expect to post to my blog at least once per month. The electric company around here doesn’t exactly have a record of alacrity and speed when it comes to restoring lost power plus there is this rain thing going on and something about water and electricity comes to mind . . .
Anyway, wasting time. This is about expectations.
The world has failed, yet again, to meet my expectations.
I know this is a jaw-dropping surprise to you, especially since I have pretty low expectations:
• Be kind to each other.
• Take care of yourself.
• Take only what you need.
• Use your brain.
Most folks agree with the first three, but for some unfathomable reason (except for a few who think they NEED more than the rest of us but that’s a different blog), I get a lot of flak about the last one. I have this unspoken expectation that people will use their brains wisely. I expect that their definition of wise will equal or at least land on the same page as my definition of wise.
And, this, I have decided is the root of all my unhappiness. I have expectations that others will live up to my definition of wise. They don’t and never will. How hard is it to: not drive 100 mph on 50 mph roads, not leave your baby in a hot car, not shoot people, not stab children to death, not sabotage your co-workers, not kidnap and dismember people, not lie, and not spend more money than you make?
Really. You have to go out of your way to do these things.
The world, however, has met one of my expectations. I am now the editor at Loyola University’s blog Meaning Making. That’s where I’ve been these past couple of months and they’ve even agreed to give us a subscribe button. So, go over there and subscribe. We will only bug you about once a week and we have some uplifting good expectations to share.
I expect I’ll see you there.
©2012 by Barbara L. Kass
Eternal Presence 