Expectation or Its Best Substitute

As a teacher, I've had to find my peace when it comes to substitutes. Students love them; teachers....ummm....not so much.

The times when I have to be out of classroom, I have taken the advice of my more experienced colleagues: don't expect what you want to get done to get done. So, as much as possible, I simplify my expectations and hope for the best. Often, what is completed--or partially attempted--is tossed in the trash...sorry, but that's the truth. It's not the fault of the substitute (not usually), I think it's just what happens when you interrupt a flow.

I'm in the process of finding a flow to how the weeks of yoga will go. Maybe there will be a pattern, maybe there won't. Usually, I expect to walk into class to Rached's "Hello," but that didn't happen today. I'm not quite up to the Tuesday, 8 am, full series Astanga class yet, so I opted for the 11 am beginner class. I was expecting a lower key, more gentle experience than yesterday. There was a substitute, Judy. She was very nice and led a very gentle class, but, not what I was expecting. I wanted the sweat, the group rhythm, the cool music. I had already started solidifying what I expect to experience in the studio.

I felt flat. I was expecting her to create the flow; to give me what I need. That wasn't happening. Nice reminder that that's not how yoga works....that's not how anything works. I may not always be in control of what takes place, but I sure as hell better not expect someone else to be responsible for what takes place.

Hmmm....I notice I'm using the words expect and expectations a lot.....Interesting.....

"Expect the best, prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes" --Zig Ziglar

"If you don't know where you're going, how do you expect to get there?" --Basil S. Walsh

"Life works out, but not as you expect it" --French proverb (That's not what Basil said)

"What did you expect to happen?" - Everyone's mom

"Act with kindness, but don't expect gratitude." --Confucius

"If your heart is a volcano, how do you expect flowers to bloom." --Kahlil Gibran

"How wrong is it for a women to expect the man to build the world she wants, rather than create it herself." --Anais Nin

"Giving birth and nourishing,
having without possessing,
acting with no expectations,
leading and not trying to control:
this is the supreme virtue." --Tao Te Ching, Book 10