Drop Expectations I bet you are nice and cozy in your bed right now,
Ready to listen to this next story to lull you to sleep as you learn an important message.
It is crucial to not have expectations set on others in order to release yourself from extra thoughts that could consume too much of your day.
It was a long and windy road down to the meadow where little Linda enjoyed sitting alone in the afternoons.
She could walk from her home down the dirt road,
Enjoying the trees and plants as they passed her by,
And how beautiful they were in the different stages depending on the season.
She walked down this road many times to get to her favorite spot.
The meadow was green in the summer and golden in the winter.
A couple times a year,
The old man who owned the pasture would ride by on his harvester and collect the hay that grew for his horses.
And sometimes he would ride by on his magnificent black horse named Jubilee.
They enjoyed seeing each other and saying hello.
She always hoped that one day she would have a horse that beautiful.
Although this meadow was wonderful,
Linda could not always stay here.
She had to go back home to two sisters who were mean to her,
One younger one and one older.
Each day little Linda would wonder,
Why isn't her mom taking her side and telling them to stop picking on her?
She could see why her dad doesn't say anything either,
Because he's always so busy or tired from work,
And hearing the kids arguing was even more tiring.
But most of all,
Linda wanted her sisters to be different.
She would say over and over to them,
Stop picking on me,
I want you to be nice to me all the time.
But this only seemed to make it worse.
One day she came home after school to a house filled with noise.
Everyone seemed to talk at the same time.
She just wants everyone to be quiet so that she can say something.
She wanted everyone else to change,
To be different.
Everyone should be nice,
Everything should be perfect.
So she put on her favorite shoes and made the long walk to the meadow.
It was late spring,
So the weather was perfect,
With not so many bugs out yet.
The sounds of nature were alive.
Everything around her seemed to make a relaxing noise.
The road was long and windy,
With the sun peeking through the leaves every now and then.
Linda made it to her favorite spot in the meadow,
And the fresh hay seed has begun to sprout.
There was a long dirt path in the middle of the field.
This time of year,
She could venture off the path,
Trying not to step on the baby hay grass.
But once the hay grows too high,
She finds a nice spot to lay down in the middle of the dirt road.
This day,
The old man had mounted his beautiful horse and was riding toward Linda on the path.
A smile comes across her face.
It was the first time she had smiled today.
Hey there Jubilee,
She says as she rubs the horse's soft nose.
The old man could see right through her momentary smile and asked Linda.
I see you got something on your mind other than Jubilee's nose.
What's up little one?
She took a deep breath in and said,
My sisters are mean to me.
I want my sisters to always treat me right,
And I expect my mom to take my side.
Daddy is always working,
And I just wish he could be home more.
The old man looked out upon his meadow and responded,
You know,
Sometimes when you expect things from people,
They end up doing the opposite of what you hoped they would.
You mean I shouldn't expect my sisters to treat me nicely?
Just see how it goes when you stop thinking about how they should be a certain way.
Then you might actually like them for who they really are.
Same goes with your mom and dad.
Linda petted the magnificent black horse and looked deeply in her eyes,
Feeling consoled by these words.
The old man gave her a gentle smile and rode away through his beautiful meadow.
Linda laid down in the soft grass and looked up at the clouds slowly rolling by in the sky.
She began to daydream how she would start thinking of her family differently,
And wonderful things began to happen in her imagination.
She imagined coming home and not expecting her sisters to tease her or treat her badly.
She didn't expect her dad to come home any earlier than he usually does,
And didn't expect her mom to take anyone's side in an argument.
So Linda walked home and arrived at her house.
Her sisters come running in the room,
Called her names,
But she didn't care.
She allowed them to be exactly how they were going to,
Without letting it upset her.
She was called names,
But it didn't matter because she didn't expect them to be any other way.
And when she didn't complain to her mom,
Her mom got some extra work done around the house because she wasn't distracted with complaints from her children.
Her sisters noticed that she wasn't fazed by their taunting behavior,
And so they got bored and found something else to do rather than bother Linda.
They actually started drawing together,
Being quiet and peaceful,
Even asking Linda if she wanted to draw with them.
Linda said,
Of course.
And they all three drew beautiful things together.
Linda drew Jubilee in her meadow.
An hour before he was expected,
Linda's dad arrived at home with a bouquet of flowers for their mother.
He had gotten a raise that allowed him to hire someone to handle some of his workload for him.
Everything in Linda's life changed in an instant.
Funny enough,
She didn't even expect for it to change either.
It felt good not thinking people would act a certain way or do things how she thought they should.
And turns out,
Life was much more harmonious when she dropped expectations.
Now allow this tale to go into the back of your mind as you become aware of how relaxed you are right now in your bed.
And how your mind is slowing down.
As well as your breath.
Let your thoughts wander.
And don't have any expectations of when you are going to fall asleep.
Just let it happen naturally.
Good night.
