When I was int eh 9th grade, I read Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Although I wasn't particularly impressed by the plot, I couldn't help but become fond of the characters, especially (believe it or not) Miss Havisham. There was something disturbingly charming about her that made me want to believe that the man who jilted her would come back and still believe her to be beautiful in her raggedy wedding dress and rotten cake.
In the wee hours of this morning, I realized that the reason why I relate Miss Havisham is because we all have a little Miss Havisham in us. We all have Great Expectations that although unrealistic to others are completely accessible to us. So many people grow up believing that their dreams will come true, whether they're of graduating from a top-notch university, having a good job, marrying the man/woman of their dreams, having children, retiring in Florida. It's only when other people come into the picture that those great expectations are dashed.
In my recent experiences I've realized that I'm in the position not only to have my dreams disturbed by others but also that I may wreck other people's great expectations. Who am I to be in a position to do such things? Who am I to yank someone from their lofty dreams only to bring them back to an unpleasant reality? All of a sudden, my own expectations don't seem so great because I'm almost certain that I, too, will be jerked back into a place where dreaming just isn't allowed.
I guess that the most important lesson of today is that even though dreams don't always come true and more often than not, we're just jilted brides hopelessly waiting for a long lost lover, dreams are what make reality tolerable. Sometimes holding on to a dream that no one else can see but you is what gets us through the day. It's what makes us believe, and it's what makes us get up in the morning. And don't we all need that kind of push when we'd rather stay in the comfort of our own beds?
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