Great Expectations?

This week's questions in search of answers:
What do I expect from others? What should I expect from others?
What do I expect from myself? What should I expect from myself?
What does God expect of me?
What do I expect of God?
What does a "fair and reasonable" expectation look like?
Is it ever OK to lower your expectations? When?

With Great Intent

“You never have to change anything you got up in the middle of the night to write.”
- Saul Bellow (unattributed)

Image via Wikipedia

Inspired by a comment from my son-in-law, I decided to make a greater investment in time and energy toward the purpose of updating this blog. And so I committed to begin more regular entries, mostly short musing from my morning devotionals and middle-of-the-night-can't-sleep prayers. Monday, Feb. 15, was set as the date for this new/re commitment. So, here it is Wednesday, Feb. 17. Better late than never -- but only if you arrive with something of value.



I stumbled upon something of value this morning: Saul Bellow, the acclaimed writer who died in 2005. I can't say I've read any of his books, which only serves as another reminder of how many great books by great writers I still need to read. I'm moving Bellow up my list, at least in part because of quotes like these that I found on wikiquotes ...



“There is only one way to defeat the enemy, and that is to write as well as one can. The best argument is an undeniably good book.” - Saul Bellow
(Quoted by Granville Hicks in The Living Novel: A Symposium (Macmillan, 1957; digitized version in 2006), p. ix)

“We mustn't forget how quickly the visions of genius become the canned goods of intellectuals.” - Saul Bellow
(Herzog (1964) [Penguin Classics, 2003, ISBN 0-142-43729-8], p. 82)

“For the first time in history, the human species as a whole has gone into politics. Everyone is in the act, and there is no telling what may come of it.” - Saul Bellow
(To Jerusalem and Back: A Personal Account (1976), p. 38)

“A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep.” - Saul Bellow
(To Jerusalem and Back: A Personal Account (1976), p. 127)