This is Us. This is Our Adventure.
When my Dad asked me over a cup of coffee on a lazy Saturday morning a few weeks ago to go on a spur-of-the-moment "Bucket List" trip to South Africa for three weeks, I immediately said "YES".
Who wouldn't? The trip of a lifetime and one that I may not otherwise do? Roaming around with lions, tigers, rhinos and elephants? Experiencing breathtaking scenery and parts of the world that are so fantastically foreign and so very much unlike my own? Pulling myself outside of my comfort zone that has grown perhaps too comfortable and allowing myself the time to reflect on what it is I really want to be when I grow up?
But really - most importantly - this was my chance to spend some quality time with my Dad at a time when it seems more meaningful than ever before. My Dad and I have always been close. We are very similar people. We have the same sense of humor, the inability to sit still for any extended period of time, an intense love of nature and an equally intense love for Titos Vodka (in no particular order). Like most of us with Dads who are growing older, I realize that time is growing shorter.
So..."YES". Absolutely..."YES".
And then...I remembered that I have this thing called a husband, these two little human people named PJ and William and a dog named Barkley who might need to factor into this decision. Ah yes, all these "adult responsibility" types of things to consider that snapped me right back to reality.
Luckily for me, I married an incredibly kind, selfless and thoughtful human being who didn't hesitate for even a moment when I brought it up.
"You have to go. You can't NOT go. This is a really incredible opportunity to spend time with your Dad and have the experience of a lifetime."
To have someone in your life who is willing to literally shove you out of your nest at a time when he knows it is necessary and be fully willing to take on the role of two parents....for three weeks....is a gift.
He could have told me he thought I shouldn't go, that it was too much with the boys and everything we have happening at home...and I would have understood. But he knows me...perhaps more than I know myself these days. He knows this is the right decision for all the right reasons and he has been incredibly supportive every step of the way since we made this decision.
So - now the real preparation begins...
