A friend included these inspiring and valuable words in a recent email: i don’t go through life with expectations. preferences maybe… but not expectations. In reflection of my outlooks to the world — and a specific aim of living prefiguratively (i.e. be the change) — I think this is quite prophetic.

I do not personally think I can could remove all expectations from my life. I know when I meet new people, especially those who come across as progressive and aware I not only assume this awareness extends across to animals, it is an oft-unconscious expectation I have. This is not as in my saying to such people they should be veg*n, I just assume they are.

This is also extended with more and expectation being placed on women. I believe this originates from/is based on the dualistic construction of woman as nurturing, man as “rational”. Whilst I openly admit this is problematic, I can also see another factor shaping these assumptions. I tend to reject the status afforded the rational. This is both a reflection of my abhorrence for the rational man as being considered superior (and thus the irrational/nurturing — i.e. emotive — female as inferior) and my attempts to embody/associate with this. With this dualistic construction aligning woman with nature I often find myself expecting women I meet to thus be more aware on this level...