Expectations

Why we hold onto expectations so firmly, I am not sure. How we form them seems to be related to who we were growing up and how we learned to cope with life’s disappointments and difficulties. What they do to us is clear: expectations shape our relationships, our attitudes, our choices.

My bride had certain expectations about her birthday. She wanted to go to the mountains, and that underlying hope/desire fueled her expectations that we would indeed trek to the hills for the weekend. There was also an expectation that this year she would simply live with the fact that her broken foot would prohibit any activities in the mountains. It is a lot of work to prepare for even an afternoon away…our crew requires food, clothing, and so much more. So these dueling expectations battled for supremacy in her mind, and in her hopes.

A week or two before her special day, she announced to me that she was praying God would do something special for her, that He would provide some meaningful escape. No mention of what that might be, just a feeling He was going to move. So when we found ourselves offered an opportunity to spend a week at camp, in a valley surrounded by Colorado “fourteeners,” on a property with a creek running through it and in a beautiful lodge…the answer was, with a smile, “Yes, I think so! Of course!”

We came to camp with expectations. Of rest. Reading. No coooking or kitchen clean up. Times playing with our children. Having some relief from the rather intensive care that our toddler requires (the camp offered child care, even knowing his special needs).

We’ve found all of those hopes met already, and we’ve only been here one full day. We’ve also had some things come up to challenge those very expectations. More on that next time.