EXPECTATIONS
I read a wonderful line in Conversations With God the other night:
"To live your life without expectation - without the need for specific results - THAT is freedom." - Neale Donald Walsch
I was so blown away when I read that, that I probably read it about 10 more times. Such a thought hardly occurred to me until that evening; such a simple idea that can affect the way we deal with everything that happens to and around us. We all grew up around expectations; expectations from our families to grow up to lead successful lives, expectations from our friends to be loyal and trustworthy, expectations from teachers and bosses to be greater thinkers and individuals. But what most often seems hardest to live up to are the expectations we have of ourselves.
We undergo so much aggravation when we can't live up to what we expect of ourselves; the amount of responsibility that we try to carry, the load of feelings we attempt to handle without aid - so much to deal with but so often not realized until we've spent all the energy and emotions we had.
And then there are those expectations we have of certain situations in our lives. We've been taught to "hope for the best, but expect the worse." No wonder we live in such a cynical world! Why not just hope for the best and expect...nothing? I've learned these last few weeks that the only way I can get through anything is to trust myself to handle whatever will happen; not so much bet all my hopes that "good" (whatever that entails) will prevail, but trust that no matter what cards I am dealt, I will strategize as best as I can for the hand I've been given (I think I've been watching too much Celebrity Poker!).
Expectations of any kind are no prize. All they do is often force us to see the shiny gold trophy at the end of the race and not much else; not the people cheering on the side (the supporters - our family and friends), not the view of the ocean we run past so quickly we don't notice how blue the water is (the experience), and not the accomplishment we attain even if we come in less than 1st place (the lessons we learn).
So NOT expecting is the key to peace and freedom...hmmm, who knew? Now I gotta go study for my midterm so I won't have to expect to fail this class. Happy Monday to one and all!
+ Rest In Peace, Superman...
Monday, October 11, 2004
Sunday, October 10, 2004
GIRLS’ NIGHT IN
Friday night…we look forward to it every Monday morning don’t we? Anticipating the much-needed comic relief of friends, the certainty of libations, and the probable late night dinner at Denny’s, IHOP or Norm’s? We’re mid-twenties (eeeks!) young adults who crave this social environment, which provides us with the familiarity and reassurance that our quarter-life crises has tended to tear apart. Sometimes it’s that Friday night out that keeps us sane; a one-night vacation, if you will, away from the aggravation and stress that schoolwork and career so generously provide us with.
There are days, however, when dancing ‘til we’re drenched in sweat, drinking ‘til we hurl and shouting over loud music ‘til we’ve lost our voices is not the comfort we seek. Sometimes we yearn for something simpler, like a night at home with 2 friends instead of 20, watching dvd’s instead of watching cute guys, and talking over coffee cake at a kitchen counter instead of talking at a bar over some malibu and coke. That’s what I had the pleasure of doing this past Friday. Too tired to socialize in a crowded club, Cile, Leia and I opted for a quiet evening at my house, clowning through The Prince & Me and then catching up on each other’s lives. We re-evaluated our relationships with people, realized our capacity to accept and deal with the circumstances that we’ve been given, and reveled in the amount of maturity we’ve experienced. Sometimes a quiet 4 hours with a couple of friends is just what the doctor ordered.
Friday night…we look forward to it every Monday morning don’t we? Anticipating the much-needed comic relief of friends, the certainty of libations, and the probable late night dinner at Denny’s, IHOP or Norm’s? We’re mid-twenties (eeeks!) young adults who crave this social environment, which provides us with the familiarity and reassurance that our quarter-life crises has tended to tear apart. Sometimes it’s that Friday night out that keeps us sane; a one-night vacation, if you will, away from the aggravation and stress that schoolwork and career so generously provide us with.
There are days, however, when dancing ‘til we’re drenched in sweat, drinking ‘til we hurl and shouting over loud music ‘til we’ve lost our voices is not the comfort we seek. Sometimes we yearn for something simpler, like a night at home with 2 friends instead of 20, watching dvd’s instead of watching cute guys, and talking over coffee cake at a kitchen counter instead of talking at a bar over some malibu and coke. That’s what I had the pleasure of doing this past Friday. Too tired to socialize in a crowded club, Cile, Leia and I opted for a quiet evening at my house, clowning through The Prince & Me and then catching up on each other’s lives. We re-evaluated our relationships with people, realized our capacity to accept and deal with the circumstances that we’ve been given, and reveled in the amount of maturity we’ve experienced. Sometimes a quiet 4 hours with a couple of friends is just what the doctor ordered.
Friday, October 08, 2004
MISS THEATRICS
I had the funniest conversation with Cile 2 days ago. I wish you could’ve heard her but I’ll leave the whiney sound of her voice to your imagination. Fantone can vouch for me on how drama she sounded.
Cecile: Anna PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE go with me to Level 3 on Friday!
Anna: Cile, I have to study for my midterm…
Cecile: STUDY ON SUNDAY!
Anna: Plus I’m running out of money too.
Cecile: You don’t have to pay to get in, PLUS I’ll treat you to dinner before if you want! And you don’t drink anyway cuz you drive…
Anna: Oh Cile, you can’t pay for me all the time. I’m not a freeloader!
Cecile: It’s the least I could do cuz you’re always listening to my crap! Anna PLEEEEEEEEEASE! Go with me! We’ll just find a booth and stare at cute boys all night. You can be my wingman.
Anna: I’m such a horrible wingman.
Cecile: No you’re not…you’re already friends with one of the guys who’s gonna be there. Anna PLEEEEASE! I’M BROKENHEARTED AND I’M ALL ALONE!
Anna: You did NOT just play that card on me!
Cecile: ANNA PLEEEEEEEEEEEASE!
Anna: Ok fine we’ll see…
Cecile: OK…please…
I remember when Cile used to come home from a long day at school. We’d all be in the living room at Exeter (Leia, Fantone, Gwen, Isa, Andrew, Larnie, Ate, Terry, and whoever else) and she’d open the door, take a step forward…and just fall to the ground like she’d just fainted. Fantone used to be like, “Cile, you’re theatrics.”
Wednesday, October 06, 2004
IT REALLY IS THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH!
These are all pictures from the wonderful day that Ate and I spent in Disneyland. This was the last visit on the Olympic swimmers' "Swim With the Stars" tour and we were lucky to have found out about it when we did. Ate and I were Olympic fanatics this past summer (in case you didn't already know) and the swimming events were the icing on our Greek cakes! "U-S-A! U-S-A!" Michael Phelps, Ian Crocker and Lenny Krayzelburg looked like the nicest guys who just happen to be Olympic Medalists. I'm awed by their resilience and discipline (among other things =) and Ate and I couldn't freakin' believe how close we were to them today!!! Hundreds of kids ditched school today to be there and that's what cracked us up the most cuz they were there with their parents! ha ha ha...After that we just spent a very chill afternoon at the Happiest Place On Earth eating our cotton candy and frozen banana. Thanks again Ate!!!
These are all pictures from the wonderful day that Ate and I spent in Disneyland. This was the last visit on the Olympic swimmers' "Swim With the Stars" tour and we were lucky to have found out about it when we did. Ate and I were Olympic fanatics this past summer (in case you didn't already know) and the swimming events were the icing on our Greek cakes! "U-S-A! U-S-A!" Michael Phelps, Ian Crocker and Lenny Krayzelburg looked like the nicest guys who just happen to be Olympic Medalists. I'm awed by their resilience and discipline (among other things =) and Ate and I couldn't freakin' believe how close we were to them today!!! Hundreds of kids ditched school today to be there and that's what cracked us up the most cuz they were there with their parents! ha ha ha...After that we just spent a very chill afternoon at the Happiest Place On Earth eating our cotton candy and frozen banana. Thanks again Ate!!!
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