There’s a photo of summer pinned to the bulletin board in the kitchen that I stare at all year long. The beach chairs, the big tent we set out in front of the beach rental, the endless expanse of sand, a sliver of water and our noses in a book.
By the end of the week I’ll be there!
One of the great pleasures of life is looking forward to a great pleasure in life, like vacation. The anticipation, the expectations, the planning, the booking of flights, the checking on the towels and bathing suits. Do we need more sunscreen? (Yes.) Will last year’s suit do? (Sure.) Do I have a good book to read? (Yep, too many of them.)
For years we’ve rented a house with my siblings and parents for an August week at the beach. I’m looking forward to those long jogs on the sand, to swimming out to the buoy, to the grand feasts we manage to stage for up to 25 people. We all cook, we all do dishes, we all eat.
It’s a bit of heaven on earth, and like the heaven in the world beyond, hope and love fill it with delight. I can’t wait to see my siblings, my parents, my kids, my nieces and nephews, their spouses (we keep growing as a family), all of us on the sand. It’s this sense of anticipation that is part of any prayer life—all those months of seeing that picture on the bulletin board. And in prayer, knowing that the good thing will happen. Holding on to it, trusting it, seeing the pictures in the head.
Vacation is around the corner, summer’s answer to prayer. Can’t wait!
