Surrendering Expectations

Carrying thoughts over from yesterday’s post, Meaning in Suffering, I wanted to point out another one of Viktor Frankl’s observations during his Holocaust imprisonment. Frankl noted several “stages” of reactions and perceptions he and the and other prisoners seemed to experience as their time in the camps dragged on, but there was one particular shift in perspective he indicated as a turning point for him. As he experienced this shift, he began to notice it in others as well and marveled at how their outlooks brightened even as their surroundings remained the same, or possibly even worsened.

The “enlightenment,” you might call it, came when Frankl was able to release his grip on what he expected from life, thus allowing his focus to shift towards what “life” expected from him. Those preconceived notions of what he thought his life should look like were blinding him to the opportunities that still remained despite his circumstances. By surrendering those expectations, he was freed to fully explore the value he could add to others. Also, in directing his attention at easing the sufferings of others, his own misery was diminished. In this, Viktor Frankl found great meaning in suffering.

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