A Neckless Giraffe & Thoughts About Expectation

Fifteen years ago, I got the idea to write and illustrate a story about expectation. What is it like when we fail to live up to lofty expectations? Are there any lessons we can learn along the way?

I had never written or illustrated a book, but—somehow—I thought I could do it. I had long dreamt of creating my own cast of characters and bringing them to life somehow—ideally, through animation. But a storybook would be good too, and much less expensive.

My first thought was to write a story about opera singers—the most successful opera singers on the planet—who were married and childless, but wished to be parents. When they dreamed, they imagined their child to eclipse their own notoriety and grow up to become the greatest opera singer of all time.

The only problem was this: the child born to them had the voice of a bicycle horn. Uh-oh.

Expectation is something most of us deal with. Sometimes, we expect more of ourselves than is reasonable. Sometimes, we don't expect enough. But many live under the specific, burdensome expectations of others, and are never able to escape that despite having a free will and unique giftings of their own. I'm saddened that there are grown men and women all around us who don't feel free to make their own life choices for fear of hurting or offending those, perhaps of the previous generation or of some social construct, who have particular expectations of them.

In planning my story, the opera singers eventually became a giraffe couple blessed with especially long necks. And when they dreamed, they had high hopes—literally—for their baby. Imagine, being parents to the giraffe with the longest neck in the world!

If you know the story, you know that Audrey Amaka was born a neckless giraffe. Despite the crushing expectations of her parent, Audrey discovered that she had a "good head on her shoulders" and eventually won the love and admiration of her family and friends alike.

But what about those of us in the real world? Breaking free of heavy-handed influences can be crushing, and should be done with much prayer and care—and with the right motives.

If you are a parent, authority figure, or have any influence at all, I urge you not to crush the spirit of those who look up to you. Right is right and wrong is wrong. Sometimes, discipline is required. Sometimes, hard conversations need to take place. These things are not in question. But attempting to fit another soul into a mold of your own making could have heartbreaking consequences over time. Instead, let's be on the lookout for ways to encourage each other in our individual giftings... vigilant, but grace-filled.