One suppertime, my eldest son, Bene, asked, “After dinner, can I play on the computer?”

My wife replied, “Son, read a book.”

My son’s facial expression didn’t change. With a big happy smile, he asked, “Mommy, after I read the book, can I play on the computer?”

My wife answered, “Son, after you read the book, go straight to bed.”

Still with a grin on his face, he asked, “Mommy, after reading the book, before I go to bed, can I play on the computer for 30 minutes?”

“No, I want you to sleep right away.”

“Mommy, how about if I play just for 15 minutes?”

The negotiation continued until my wife conceded. My son expected to get what he wanted. He used his smile, his puppy eyes and his cuteness. He used compromise. But the important thing was he got what he wanted.

As adults, we don’t do that anymore. We go to God and say, “Lord, please give me….” And when we don’t get it, we say, “OK, never mind.”

We quit. Easily.

But the universe adjusts to your expectations.

If you expect nothing, you get nothing.

Ask. Not for a bit. Not for a little. Ask for a double portion!

Bo Sanchez