The sun never says...

Even after all this time,

The sun never says to the earth,

"you owe me."

Look what happens with a love like that,

It lights the Whole Sky.

(Hafiz)

Imagine that. Love without expectation.

The sun gives to the earth without ever asking anything in return.

Can you imagine if we all spent a little more time loving more & expecting less?

ex·pec·ta·tion

   [ek-spek-tey-shuhn] Show IPA

–noun

1.

the act or the state of expecting: to wait in expectation.

2.

the act or state of looking forward or anticipating.

3.

an expectant mental attitude: a high pitch of expectation.

4.

something expected; a thing looked forward to.

5.

Often, expectations. a prospect of future good or profit: to have great expectations.

6.

the degree of probability that something will occur: There is little expectation that he will come.

7.

Statistics. mathematical expectation.

8.

the state of being expected: a large sum of money in expectation.

I have expectations of myself as a person, a dancer, a yogi, an athlete, a Rockette, a friend, a sister, a young trendy girl living in NYC... I have expectations of my family, my friends, Starbucks baristas, yoga instructors, ballet instructors, taxi cab drivers...the list goes on. How reasonable are they & how many of them could I let go? Where did they even come from? Walking into any experience with too many expectations inhibits the ability to fully appreciate it. The world is a beautiful place, let it be. It's healthy to be optimistic, to push yourself...but experience has taught me that holding onto unreasonable expectations generally leads to dissapointment. We're all crazy perfectionists in a demanding world. It's time to shake off all those expectations & live each day with fresh eyes & a fresh mind. Spring cleaning!!! Let each moment come to you without expectation, & enjoy each experience for exactly what it is. I mean, in it's most simple form, that's what life is all about anyways, right? Once you've made some space by clearing out some of those crazy expectations, you may even have room for a little bit more love & compassion? The world could definitely use it.

(Can you tell I've been taking a lot of yoga again? All my crazy, hippie, peace, love, ballet & yoga talk? I spent 6:00pm until 7:30 upside down in yoga working on using my low, low abdominal muscles to initiate bringing my legs straight up into handstands then again in headstands...I'm going to be sore tomorrow...I love yoga)