Disappointment

dis•ap•point (v):
1. to fail to fulfill the expectations or wishes of
2. to defeat the fulfillment of (hopes, plans, etc.); thwart; frustrate

dis•ap•point•ment (n):
1. The act or fact of disappointing
2. the state or feeling of being disappointed

I realize more and more recently that people are going to disappoint me. Some of it is simple fleeting disappointment; someone didn’t call when they said they would, someone said something that hurt me, someone bailed on plans…the list goes on. Sometimes that disappointment is deeper, and that usually comes from people I am really close to repeatedly letting me down or hurting me, or themselves. But really, the worst is when I disappoint myself.

What I’m not sure about is whether that disappointment stems from a short-coming of a persons actions (including my own) in any given situation, or if that disappointment really only comes because I have set the standard of what I am expecting too high. I also realize however, that I too am guilty of disappointing other people for all reasons I talked about previously.

So is disappointment unavoidable? Not to say that we will ALWAYS disappoint each other, which I do no think that is the case at all, but is it inevitable that to be human, is to disappoint?

Whether it is inevitable or not, does not change how bad disappointment feels. It is not pleasant. It does not feel good to be on either side, whether I am the person who is disappointed, or I am the disappointer. I want to strive to be a person who does not disappoint others. I want to strive to be a person who does not disappoint myself.