Anticipation is the act of looking forward to something, especially a pleasurable expectation. At the other end of the spectrum is dread. There are so many things in life that we anticipate or dread, and we spend so much time waiting for them to happen.
It has been one whole week since most of us got back from Spring Break. Is it just me or was it over too fast? We spent over two months waiting for Spring Break to come and to finally have a little hiatus from school. Now it is back to the grindstone and we are waiting impatiently for the end of the semester. And no one is waiting more impatiently than all of you seniors who are counting down the days ‘til graduation. What is it now, 20 schooldays? I know you are all excited about graduation. The anticipation is probably killing you. But with that most likely comes dread as well. Now you have to find a job and work full-time. You have to be completely responsible for your life. That is kind of scary.
Anticipation is a universal thing and so is dread. It keeps things lively, and if we had nothing to look forward to, we would be so boring. Often we dread something or anticipate something so much that when the actual event happens, it can’t ever live up to what we expected, good or bad.
Over Spring Break, my family went skiing. I had not been in almost ten years, and while I used to be really good, I was scared because I wasn’t sure I would pick it up again. But instead of getting a refresher lesson or helping me out, my dad sent me up the bunny slope with my brothers and told me just to go. I got to the top of the hill and completely blanked on how to turn, or stop, or anything really. After some needling from my brothers, I finally skied down and slowly remembered how to do all the things I couldn’t remember at first. After a few more times down the hill, I had my ski legs back and was fine the rest of the day – until I fell the very last time up the lift and got hurt. So that anticipation and dread all week was good. I ended up having fun, for the most part, and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be.
Here are some more examples we anticipate and dread in our lives: Graduating college. Getting your dream job. Getting married. Going to the doctor. Having surgery. Getting in a car wreck. Having children. Our president making good decisions. The economy improving. Moving into your own place. Getting a new puppy or kitten. Getting fired. A close friend or family member dying. Writing a paper. Making a presentation. Seeing a new movie. Going to an exotic location. Traveling absolutely anywhere. Finals week. The big game. Moving. The holidays. Going to war. Seeing an old friend. Meeting new people.
People anticipate and dread different things. It is all about perspective. Some of these things many people dread. And some of the same things other people anticipate excitedly. It is all about how you look at it. Remember that, in most cases, it will come eventually, and you can either spend the whole time dreading it or you can look on the bright side and see the silver lining in anything.
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