Expectation Poem
To accept or expect
That is the question
To live in the moment
Or demand attention
The weather forecast
May be right or wrong
But the seasons keep changing
To help us stay strong
We can choose to strive
To seek and not to yield
Or we can just be love
And simply open the field
For it is in the surrender
That we lose the addiction
And find ourselves
In a place without friction
The pursuit of happiness
Has too many highs and lows
The peace of contentment
Allows us to enjoy life’s flows
When I think of love
It is often a chase
But it is time right now
To leave that race
For when I feel in my heart
The love is there
From a smile or a touch
Or a show of care
To believe takes faith
And a loss of control
But that is when serendipity
Starts to play its role
And then it happens
When you open your eyes
To see what is already there
And you finally realise
It is there in full view
But not how you expect
So love what you have
And treat it with respect
I have been contemplating how our society is changing and how we seem to be driven by screens and images that create so many expectations about how our lives ‘should be.’ I think back to my life as a child and it was so much simpler when technology was not such an integral part of everyday living. As I lay in bed this Sunday morning, I could hear children playing outside. That was such a regular sound in my childhood – but now, children are for the most part silent whilst playing games indoors on a device.
This gamification of our lives, that is driven by the rewards of ‘Likes’ or ‘Results’ or ‘Bonuses’ or the ‘Next Option’ or worse still, the ‘Better Option,’ has blinded us from what simply is – and the people who are in our lives that already love us. Just before I finished this piece, I saw a quote from Oleg Vishnepolsky, “Do NOT waste your time trying to get people to love you. Instead, spend your time with those who already do.” A noble and lovely concept.
I have several dear friends and I do make some time to see most of them, but I am starting to think it would be nice to spend even more time with them in the future. Yesterday, I spent nearly all day with just one friend and we looked at our phones to check the time twice and I sent a reply to my son’s message about whether or not I would be home for dinner. It was a wonderful day of disconnection from technology and reconnection with self and a loved one. I wish you many more moments with the people who already love you. With love, Sue Ellson 🙂
Photo is of beach at Cowes, Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia on 1 September 2018
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