ANTICIPATION

A series of essays....

ANTICIPATING WHAT AWAITS US AROUND THE CORNER

....as seen through my eyes!





By: Jacqueline E. Hughes

Anticipation is the hope that spreads throughout the body and sends silent tremors from the brain down the arms and legs to the fingertips and lowly toes until the power that surges through us reaches its pinnacle and climaxes into a brilliant crescendo of sound, colors, and textures. Like a frosty morning waiting for the warmth of sunrise, we humans shiver in dawn's chilling embrace while crouching in a fetal position, naked to the world and exposed to the elements. We are left completely vulnerable, unprotected, and waiting...waiting for the morning sun to penetrate our mortal souls. With the light, our hope becomes real. With the bird's song, our heart sings. With the morning breeze kissing our lips, we clothe our nakedness in expectations, great and ordinary, looking forward to what this bright, new day has to offer.

Being human, we can take another path and make our way through the discordant notes of imagined or real foreboding, presentment, until the feeling of discontent looms above our heads like a menacing, black, cartoon cloud capable of precluding brighter prospects. Some days are better than others. Other days, we are confronted by certain scenarios that might be so negatively charged they allow our inner demons to take control of our mental functionality until we no longer have a voice and our options have diminished. Despondency. The dull ache that rips open the soul but is fully anticipated without the least comprehension of reason or purpose. Can the prospect of personal dysfunction lull the mind into a state of adverse comfort with its cold, inimical voice singing acidic words deep within melodies composed of beating drums leading funeral marches to the gravesite? Some of us sit by on the sidelines oblivious to their pain and suffering, lacking the knowledge or reasoning behind such personal conflict and fail to assist or understand them. In hindsight, we will chalk it up to our own shame, denial, stupidity.....!

Remember the written words of Mr. Alexander Pope in his Essay on Man, "Hope springs eternal in the human breast," and extract from these words what you will, what brings for you "the soul's calm sunshine" and the idea that each one of us can achieve true  happiness while on this earth. Oh, to remain open-minded and receptive of this concept every day of our lives would truly be a goal worth reaching and as priceless as the newborn infant entering naked into a world filled with unknowns, but with a clean palette of hope and possibilities! May this child grow strong and healthy, hear and feel the gut-wrenching 'Boom' of each exploding firework while witnessing the majestic spray of glittering and colorful glory high above as new ideas sparkle and swirl gently down around her. Humans are adaptable. The blinding rain that covers us in fear and self-doubt one day, will turn into rays of sunshine tomorrow.

Carly Simon's second album entitled, Anticipation, and released in November of 1971, is an explosive reminder that innocence of mind, purity of heart, and the promise of new love can become a 'tour de force,' a breath of fresh air to those who might have forgotten that passion and love are the true overlords of mankind, not necessarily reason or logic.



Note: This essay was originally published in August of 2014.


Copyright   2019 By Jacqueline E. Hughes
All rights reserved