March is the Month of Expectation by Emily Dickinson
March is the Month of Expectation.
The things we do not know –
The Persons of prognostication
Are coming now –
We try to show becoming firmness –
But pompous Joy
Betrays us, as his first Betrothal
Betrays a Boy.
March is here, which means that despite the unusually mild winter in this neck of the woods, the season of expectation we call “spring” is not yet here, but just around the corner. I love the springtime, the season of love and rebirth, when all things are made new.
Expectation, or the strong belief that something will happen or be the case in the future, is a uniquely human capacity. In my observation, most people lower their expectation of newness as they age. They eventually feel they’ve seen it all, that there is nothing new under the sun and that the “same old” is much more likely to occur than anything new and exciting.
The likely reason they draw such a conclusion is that people usually see what they’re looking for. This confirmation bias is a form of prejudice or myopia, where habits of observation wear ruts in the consciousness of the beholder. It’s not that newness doesn’t continue to occur, it’s just that it doesn’t get noticed anymore.
You’re always expecting something. Realizing this, you are wise to remember that you, and only you, have control over the inclination of your expectation.
“We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aid, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
Gregory Hake 
How wonderful it is to have aged… to have seen and delighted in so many Springs. To have reached a place internally where one is not waiting for someone else or something else to fulfil ones expectations, From this place of inner quiet there can be no blame or even concern about been disappointed, for every life experience is viewed from the standpoint of an opportunity to express ones highest and finest. Thank you Gregg for providing a venue in which this can be done.
LikeLike
You’re welcome and thank you for doing the same for me and others by maintaining a healthy and fresh sense of expectation in your life!
LikeLike
This is a great lesson, and an opportunity to always let things be made new for the better (especially people!) I think that if things aren’t changing for you all of the time, you are doing something wrong. There are cycles and seasons, and if you either try to hold on to something past it’s time or move through things too fast, you will have a sub-optimal experience. I am looking forward to the spring as well, maybe an opportunity for internal change will come along with the changes ongoing in nature.
LikeLike
Most people think of change in its external manifestation. I appreciate you pointing to the opportunity of internal change!
LikeLike
This is such a large and expansive subject. Thanks for the reminder that we have the control over the inclination of our expectation. Are we caught by the seemingly suttle influences that cause us to look on the future with a sense of doom and gloom or do we stop the nonsense and look squarely at the inifnite expectation of the dawn of any moment, any day, any month, any season etc. The choice really is ours to stop and reevaluate as needed when we are choosing darkness and remember the gift of choice that lies within our mind and heart. Obviously there is only one choice to make if we are to truly live. LET THAT WHICH BRINGS LIFE AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY BE CHOSEN NOW!
LikeLike
It does take something to rise above, not just in a general sense, but in relation to the specific elements of potentially crushing and stifling disappointment that we all must face along the way. Thanks for sharing!
LikeLike
Thanks for a very timely piece Gregg. This is one of the main areas that we work in with salespeople, the area of expectation. If we say, and I do, “that sales is a transference of feelings”, than it stands to reason that the feelings are often generated by expecations. For example, if a salesperson expects a prospective client to have a certain objection, sure as shooting that is very likely to happen. On the other side of the expectation coin, when a salesperson expects the prospective client to absolutely love and appreciate what the salesperson is offering, then it is very likely that that person will become a client today. Now obviously for this to happen the salesperson needs to have sound products and services that they are presenting, but presuming that they do than it often boils down to this piece called expectation.
Sounds simple doesn’t it! But it does seem to work this way, and certainly not only in sales but in other aspects of life as well.
LikeLike
Thanks for the sales lesson reminder. This really puts expectation in a practical and useful light.
LikeLike
Great application of the principle Chuck! Thank you.
LikeLike
The inclination of my heart is caught up this morn, as the dawn of a new day brings great promise, so too does the coming future, as all things are being made new within, it can be expected that , that as the ship is held “Steady as she goes”, all things without will soon follow.
“As we seek so also shall we find”, is now seen as a great promise, seeking the newness and fresh spirit of renewal this spring will be glorious!
LikeLike
Beautiful! Thanks for sharing
LikeLike
My pleasure, Brad.
LikeLike
Oh what beautiful thoughts and poerty. I’ve been watching a tree in my yard begin to bud and it is such a gracious rhythm. A new nest is being made in the eave of our roof as I write this. I love all the seasons and eagerly anticipate this renewal. The older I get the more I realize how much can change in an instant. I’m not referring to loss but change. The stars line up as never before, the right mix of yielded hearts, the coming of age of an exceptional individual, the awakening of another…what is the tipping point of any extraordinary event?
Who knows? Stay tuned…! Thanks for a thrilling post.
LikeLike
“Father Reason by Rumi” The universe is a form of divine law, your reasonable father. When you feel ungrateful to him, the shapes of the world seen mean and ugly. Make peace with that father, the elegant patterning, and every experience will fill with immediacy. Because I love this, I am never bored. Beauty constantly wells up, the noise of springwater in my ear and in my being. Tree limbs rise and fall like the ecstatic arms of those who have submitted to the mystical life. Leaf sounds talk together like poets making fresh metaphors. The green felt cover slips, and we get a flash of the mirror underneath. Think how it will be when the whole thing is pulled away. I tell only one thousandth of what I see, because there is so much doubt everywhere. The conventional opinion of this poetry is, it shows great optimism for the future. But Father Reason says, no need to announce the future! This now is it. This. Your deepest need and desire is satisfied by the moment’s energy here in your hand.
LikeLike
Thank you for introducing me and my readers to Rumi by way of this lovely passage, Carmen!
LikeLike
Thank you, and beautiful Thoreau quote!
LikeLike
I felt like a prospector in Dahlonega’s Gold Rush when I found that quote!
LikeLike