Lately, I've given a lot of thought to the word "expectation" and even "expectations" in general. Expectations when presented before someone can be a disastrous encounter if not presented with certain understanding. Unknowingly [many times] we place expectations on people for no reason at all other than for self assurance or self acclimation. I'm sure I am just as guilty as the rest of you all. I know I will make a statement to someone "expecting" them to respond a certain way... And when [If] they respond differently than I expected, I blame them for some sort of fault. For instance lets look at it from this view -- at my current job, I'm known as "happy teacher". The only way I was granted such a "title" was because everyday when I would show up for work, I spoke to everyone; front desk workers, the administrators, ALL of the other teachers... literally everyone I came in contact with [And I tried to keep a good attitude about the work place even when things weren't so great]. One day a week or so ago I walked in and just sat down at my desk. I didn't say anything to anyone really, just smiled and begin lesson plans. A coworker said, "Hello Zack" in which I replied, "Hi". Nothing more, nothing less... and they immediately ask, "What's wrong?" Nothing was wrong, but just because I had not made a "grand entrance" greeting everyone or replied the way they expected me to, something was obviously wrong. It was that incident that led me to thinking about expectations... What people expect of me and what I expect of others. Expectations can have both positive and negative ramifications, depending upon the lens one chooses to peak through. Growing up in a conservative southern Christian family, many things are "expected" of me. Not all are negative things [if any at all are] but I often question the reason why such things are expected of me just because I was raised a certain way in a particular place in North America. I even wonder the reason we expect others to respond a certain way when we hear they grew up with certain beliefs or from certain locations. Why is it that our minds continue to work in such a manner? I'm currently in Korea and Koreans have two types of food, [as they would say] spicy and very spicy. Just because I'm from America they seem to automatically think I will not like spicy food, thus expecting me to ask for something "not so spicy". Or a question I'm asked numerous times is, "Do you have a gun?" It's a funny question I admit, but they expect all Americans to carry guns [or to at least own a gun], especially black people. I know most of this portion of expectancy is influenced from Hollywood [Thanks Hollywood for making us appear so violent, but yet glamorous all within a pleasant 90 minutes] which can be taken with a grain of salt. Or how about when we don't meet the expectations of those close to us; friends, family, etc? Many times it puts strains on friendships, causes wedges to be placed between family members and often times causes major destruction of relationships with those once dear to us. I guess what I'm trying to get at with this entire ramble is perhaps we could take a step back, rethink the things we expect of people and perhaps ask the questions, "What is right to expect of him/her?" or "Why should I expect this/that from him/her?" I know I've been challenged within my own journey to look at this issue and try to figure out an appropriate balance with it all...
Merry Christmas everyone! I hope this day finds you doing well, spending time with friends and family... or for some of us, just random foreigners gathered together in Korea. Today I woke up surrounded by a number of other foreigners with whom I spent Christmas Eve with playing games and enjoying the company of each another. There is something about spending this time of the year with people... family, friends, acquaintances, etc. that helps "make the season" special. Wherever you are found in the world today, I hope you have a wonderful Christmas day with those near and dear. Cheers!
Today officially marks the first day of the 2009-2010 winter season although it has already been pretty cold here in Busan. As I type, it is currently in the low 30's F [-1 to 2 degrees celsius]. I enjoy the winter season especially the Christmas holiday. Most of the stores have their decorations up... lights, trees, and sales are EVERYWHERE. It would be shameful to neglect the fact that there are insane shoppers [normal people any other time of the year] running rampant through the streets! I love seeing the different hats and mittens that the Koreans so proudly wear to keep warm... at least I hope they are wearing them to stay warm and not as some sort of fashion statement. You people should really see some of these things. Perhaps I'll post some pictures of some in the coming days. All in all, I'm glad winter is here, but hopefully she will not bring with her a dreadful time. Happy Holidays everyone...