Fireside Chat Reflection 03/31/26

This time it was about expectations, and how we handle them. Connie brought up that she doesn't start with an expectation. An intention can move to a goal, and then move into an expectation. She lives in intentions, which resonated with me since an intention is something I can do for myself. An expectation can really be a heavy lift at times. Mike mentioned Disneyland, and how as parents you rush from one thing to another to another because we (adults) know how to work the park. But it can potentially take the joy out of the experience for the youngsters. His son wanted to get out of line and go do something else. He obliged and that trip today is remembered as one of the best. Kathy also said that her son wanted Mickey pancakes, and it took about an hour or more to do that - and while she kept thinking "we are wasting precious time" her son was enjoying every moment of breakfast and each bite of pancakes, and yes - for him too- it still comes up when they talk about that trip. I have literally RUN my kids from ride to ride to hit the great ones first because "you'll miss it if you don't do it this way" but - what did I miss by not allowing them to orchestrate the day. My take away for this is to be more mindful of the little ones and listen to their requests while letting my expectations of what "the best way" is.

And Lori mentioned that life may have taken a turn that blew any expectation you may have had out of the water. While I think the pivot she chose is amazing - I know her expectation of what life would look like right now is different then the life she has.

If you reflect back to:

"I thought I had to keep everyone happy!"

I thought my relationships would follow a certain path!"

"I thought I'd have it figured out by this age..."

"I thought my success had to look a certain way."

Are there expectations you may be holding onto now, without realizing it?

Does disappointment come from expectation?

Connie mentioned a book called "1000 names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are" by Byron Katie.

I'm going to grab the Audible this week and check it out.

Thank you everyone for your participation.

See you next time!

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