EXPECT 0%, ACCEPT 100% (part 1)

This is a fictitious tale about acceptance and expectations, a hedgehog, squirrel and some other characters.

Once upon a time there was a hedgehog who lived in an aged forest full of grand trees. This hedgehog did exactly what hedgehogs do. It foraged near hedges to satiate it’s insectivore appetite. All the while it made tiny grunt sounds, honouring the ‘hog’ in its name.

One could call this creature ‘cute’ (a label…..more on that later). He could curl himself into a tight ball and straighten himself out again in a cutesy form of hedgehog yoga. When he closed himself into a snuggly ball, he was protected, warm and at peace, shut off from the outside world.

Even the outside world loved the hedgehog. Humans deemed the hedgehog useful, as he ate the sinister bugs that would wreck their gardens and their pride (an expectation was born……more on that later).

Sadly the hedgehog’s eyesight was pretty shite, so playing to it’s strengths, it used it’s excellent hearing and smell to be resourceful.

‘Who needs great eyesight in the dark anyway?’

Said the nocturnal hedgie to himself (a self-narrative ………more on that later).

The hedgehog had a party trick too, it would eat poisonous plants, then make a frothy saliva and cover it’s own needles with the toxins and poisons. This self-anointing ritual would certainly give predators a shock. He was intelligent, he could foresee potential dangers and would equip himself in advance.

This cutesy hedgie would go into hibernation for 4–6months, depending on it’s mood. He was acutely aware of the amounts of energy he had, and how much to exert on whom. He was strategic, and smart fellow.

One could say his IQ was pretty high.

Sometimes there were challenges finding enough food of course, and competing with other hedgehogs working the same patches of land. But overall, life was calm and our introverted hedgehog was happy with the pace and of course looked forward to his months long siesta in the winter, for which he was well prepared.

The Squirrel

In another part of the large forest lived a squirrel. The Squirrel was energetic, fast and seemed to always be on the move. She was happy and fun, and told tales of new oak trees she had discovered and grand sycamore trees she longed to climb. Her dream was to go on adventures and discover new trees everywhere she went.

The squirrel was sociable and had many forest friends whom she cared for deeply. Whenever she foraged for nuts, seeds and fruits she would share her abundant pile with all she held dear. Some forest friends would eagerly await her daily return to see what gifts she bought with her (an expectation was formed……more on that later).

Sometimes she would bury her food and go off for a stretch, only to return and find her day’s work had been stolen by fellow forest ‘friends’ who longed for a free lunch. Not a great day in a squirrel’s life, but she frequently pulled herself up and put the smile back on her face.

The squirrel wore many hats, she was a gymnast, a nurturer, a gardener, a prankster, a hunter and gatherer. Both intelligent and adaptable. Unlike the hedgehog the squirrel had superior vision. She could even see behind her.

One could say, her EQ was pretty high.

The squirrel would over indulge in time for winter, piling on the pounds to grow extra layers of fat to stay warm in the bitter cold. This delicious overindulgence was her clever winter survival strategy (and besides she quite liked her large bushy posterior).

Since she was a tree squirrel she wouldn’t hibernate like her ground relatives, but she would definitely not be as active. If she had done a good enough job during the Summer, she would pick at her heaps of stored nuts during the colder months, and dream about having a family one day.

Life was mostly fun and full of adventures. The squirrel was content with herself and happy to live amongst and contribute to her forest community.

The hedgehog meets the squirrel

One fine day, the hedgehog bumped into the squirrel. Luckily his spikes were down, so her plump bottom wasn’t spiked.

The squirrel introduced herself in her usual chatty way, and the hedgehog politely responded, and the two of them shared a laugh and a story or two.

The squirrel talked about the different places she had lived and how she had to rebuild her life every time and become accepted amongst the forest community. Hence she now had a large network of contacts, and knew which forest areas to avoid and which areas were more welcoming.

The hedgehog spoke about the wonderful leafy burrows and nests he had built during his lifetime. It was his dream to one day build a magnificent trail of burrows leading to a palatial nest of leaves. His home was his solace and sense of pride. He often spoke of his dreams for nest/burrow-building, and would research his ideal home everyday.

The next few days and weeks they would meet again and again. They would dine together, each bringing their own cuisine to the table, enjoying one another’s company. One talking about his dream home and the other talking about the possibilities for a bright future. A beautiful friendship was born.

As winter approached, the hedgehog prepared for his hibernation, and the squirrel piled on the fat and continued to store her nuts for her survival.

Hibernation

The two friends had enjoyed a lovely summer, but time had come for the hedgehog to hibernate. He was tired and needed to rest. The squirrel understood but still felt sad to say goodbye.

They both embraced on the day of departure, and the squirrel sadly waved goodbye as she saw her best friend bury himself under a pile of leaves and disappear. She wondered how it felt to sleep for so long and rest. She wondered when he would emerge? would it be 3 months? 4 months? 5 months? Longer?

She would then bounce back from reality, by reminding herself that she was different to the hedgehog, and resting and napping unnecessarily was just not in her DNA, she had trees to discover.

‘Each to their own’

Is what she used to say.

A friendship grew

As years went by, the squirrel and the hedgehog grew closer and closer. The unlikely friends found one another endearing. The hedgehog enjoyed the squirrel’s chitter chatter and tales of her adventures, for he was not the type to wander too far. He could satiate his curiosity through her tales.

And the squirrel enjoyed the hedgehog’s calmer pace of life, for sometimes she yearned for a slower and more peaceful life. She wondered how it felt to just be content with the trees she had climbed, instead of looking for new trees to explore.

Could she be more like the hedgehog, and content living in the small forested area, doing the same thing every day?

Marriage

One day, after a bit of discussion, the hedgehog and the squirrel decided to get married.

It was an odd pairing for sure, and lots of forest friends had something to say about it. The hedgehog community secretly whispered amongst themselves that he should have stuck to his own kind, and found a hedgehog wife. At least a hedgehog marrying a hedgehog could eat the same food and hibernate together. It really wasn’t the done thing for a hedgehog to wander outside it’s hedgehog community boundaries.

The squirrel’s family and friends whilst more accepting of the hedgehog, wondered why the squirrel had settled for a hedgehog, when she could have found herself a spirited squirrel instead……..after all there were over 200 species to chose from ! At least a like-minded squirrel pairing could have explored trees at the similar pace, and spent the entire year together.

Find out what happened to the hedgehog and squirrel post-marriage in PART 2 of ‘EXPECT 0%, ACCEPT 100%’. Follow me now to be notified. Comment/Share/Like if you like learning new perspectives.

Written by Dee Allan-The Gritty Girl, International Speaker, Writer and Entrepreneur. Dee runs an employment agency, blogs on the Medium platform, and lives in Singapore with her husband and two cheeky kids.