Keeping Expectations in Perspective

It is human nature to have expectations.  To expect something is to anticipate, or to look forward to, something that or may not be coming, the feeling that something is about to occur. Perhaps even a mental picture of what the outcome of a situation might be.  An expectation is a belief about what might happen in the future.  The word expectation comes from the Latin word expectationem, meaning "an awaiting."   If one has great expectations, they think that something good will come their way and they have high expectations.  They think optimistically which can be a good thing. Think good thoughts until proven otherwise is a common way for people to believe.  Although high expectations are the most popular, there are those people who keep their expectations low because they don't want to risk disappointment.  A disappointment is a sad and discouraged feeling of loss that does everything from crush hopes to ruin a day.  It defeats the fulfillment of what one has been anticipating.  "Disappointment proves that expectations were mistaken." says Mason Cooley.  Usually the people who set their expectations low have learned from experience what happens from expectations being dashed and they don't want to risk disappointment.  They feel it is safer to think the worst, and if good things happen, all the better.  It has been said that high expectations are resentments in the making.  Not all expectations are positive, sometimes they have connotations of being negative, or of impending doom, in this case one hopes what they are expecting does not come about.  People can also have high expectations of others and be disappointed in one another.  Someone may say, "I expected more from you," and then, of course, we can disappoint ourselves as well.