It is every one's experience. May be once, or twice, or scores of times.. But people don't change.. Do expectations really hurt? Or is it over expectations that hurt? Now the interesting question is what are over expectations? When do we come know that we are expecting something impossible.. Obviously we can't define something called over expectation.. We may expect our friend to remember our b'day.. This is not a over expectation as far as I know.. But he/she may not remember it.. He/She might not have forgotten it till now.. But changing circumstances (like increase in work load, ill health etc) might have forced him/her to do so.. We wait for her/his greetings and we are disappointed.. People say "Can't we expect as little as that".. But believe me expecting as little as that can also make us feel ignored.. Life goes on.. People change.. Their preferences change.. These people include your best friend, parents, your spouse.. Then how do we know we are crossing our limit in our expectations.. How can we prevent getting hurt.. Here is some general advice..
1. Expect nothing from anybody.. Expectations lead to disappointments.. But zero expectations keep us happy all the time.. Every minute is a surprise
2. A more practical approach would be to expect according to the situation..For e.g., Do not expect your spouse to spend same amount of time with you in the early days of marriage and later on.. Do not expect that your boss is going to praise you because you did something commendable..
It is always difficult to practice than to preach.. Before expecting something from someone keep the entire situation in your perspective.. Even if you are positive that what you are expecting is possible in the current circumstances, it is always better to expect the worst.. Then you can never be disappointed.. Always give more and do not expect anything in return.. There is more happiness in giving than receiving.. Experience that..