Half the Joy is Anticipation

One of my dreams has been to take a vacation with my siblings. We had such good times on vacations as kids that I'd like to do it again. As young children under the care of our parents, we were vacationed every summer and every winter. Winter vacations were to Florida but summers, ahh, the summer. My dad made sure we had a great vacation and many times those vacations were in the form of a road trip. Most road trips were made to the west. My father loves the west and takes every opportunity to obey the command, "go west, young man, go west". The Montana town of Columbus is my father's birthplace. Born to a family of homesteaders, he spent his first three years out west running on the prairies with the rattle snakes and riding in horse and wagon on bumpy dirt paths. One is hard pressed to believe that is only a generation prior to my own. Even though his family lost their dream there with crop failures year after year, my dad continues to have a passion for that area of the country. The west has been beaconing me for some time but time and money hasn't come togetheryet. This year, I may be getting my dream come true. My brother, next in line but five years my junior, was here, along with his wife, to visit a few weeks ago and we began to dream together about visiting Yellowstone again and enjoying the exploration of the wonderful state of Colorado. I think its going to happen!
You know people talk of surprise parties or surprise gifts. I'm one who appreciates the value of anticipation. The trip out west will be twice the joy if I think about it the next two months and then experience it first hand in July than if someone said, "We are going out west so get in the car". So, the upshot is that I will take great joy in the planning and dreaming.