DO EXPECTATIONS HURT?
Today morning, I was supposed to start a new chapter for a group of students. I wanted all of them to be present for the first lecture, as, without the basics, they would find it difficult to cope with it later.
“Come what may, don’t miss the initial
few lectures,” I, always, make a great deal of fuss.
Mostly, my fuss pays… My students
don’t miss…
And, whenever some of them do, I
get irritated and angry.
Today, in spite of repeated
reminders, over last three days – including personal phone calls – a young girl
was absent.
Strangely, I had already decided,
right at the start of the day, today, that, come what may – I would not allow
any student to affect my peace of mind. Yes, even if all of them remained
absent, too!
It was a clear call I had made in
my heart – all consciously, joyfully and with no ill-will or judgment. No, I
wasn’t making this choice with suppressing my complaint, my feelings… I was
making this call, because, I wanted to experience the bliss of not being
controlled by another human being’s behavior, words or reaction towards me.
And, believe me, it worked!
Only one girl was absent… I had
personally called her last afternoon… had sent a late night reminder… and, now
she was not there!
“It is alright,” I said, and I
move on.
Whatever the reason – and there
must be some reason, including the all familiar “Sorry sir, I had over slept” –
it is okay. I had chosen peace over perfection… I had chosen the divine way
over my way…
So, by allowing myself to be
pliable… I escaped the onslaught of ‘failed expectations’!
Had I opted to tread the familiar
route of holding on to my expectations, I would have, certainly, ended up
getting hurt… and, spent the rest of my day fuming… handing over the keys of my
mind’s sanity to the hands of this young
student… Yes, I would have suffered as a victim. A loser!
“Expectations hurt,” they say.
They do.
But, why haven’t they hurt me,
today?
"Two
roads diverged in a wood,
and
I, I took the one less traveled by,
And… that has made all the difference."
I wonder if Robert Frost had ever imagined that his immortal
lines could apply even a journey such as this!
GERALD D’CUNHA
Pics.: Aditi Kamath
Comments
...... Manoj
Vijay