Expectations

It is not going to turn out like you think it is going to. It never does. What you expect is only an imag­i­nary expec­ta­tion. Our pro­jec­tions are but rough esti­mates. The link between real­ity and imag­i­na­tion always has a gap. Our antic­i­pa­tions are a way of envi­sion­ing what might be — ought to be — could be — but never exactly what will be. Do not despair over the gap.

With­out the gap life would be bor­ing. The fact that you have to adjust to what is con­stantly keeps you think­ing and aware. Even the most rou­tine activ­ity has its glitches. Life has enough pre­dictabil­ity to keep us a bit sane, but it has enough nov­elty to keep us on our toes. Dis­il­lu­sion­ment is the result of ignor­ing the nec­es­sary gap between ought and is.

We have phrases that help us with the gap: go with the flow; chill out; relax into it; don’t be so uptight…etc. They all have a sim­i­lar theme: relax the grip on your expec­ta­tions. Rigid hopes never match fluid life. Allow for a lot of flex­i­bil­ity. Life is a process — not a machine. Biol­ogy is not tech­nol­ogy. This is a planet, not a laboratory.

Per­son­al­ity rigid­ity can keep one con­stantly dis­ap­pointed. It is the “China Doll Syndrome” — beautiful but unable to be resilient…thus end­ing up in pieces on the floor. Give today a chance to be what it will be — not what you think it ought to be. Nature is con­sid­er­ably more cre­ative than your expec­ta­tions. Go with it!