Anticipation

Has it ever occurred to you that we spend a great deal of time waiting for things to happen?

When we are little, we wonder what it will be like to be "grown up". As we grow older we begin to find our identity in education, choosing a career path, and our ultimate career goals. (Side note: I cringe when people make their careers their entire life and identity. Life and who we are should amount to so much more than that! Anyway...) Besides the job, we are waiting for: holidays, payday, weekends, romance, babies, home, vacation, celebrations, and eventually... retirement? Sometimes I wonder how much time I spend looking forward to future plans and opportunities. Even as I write this, I am waiting for an important email to pop up in my inbox. This one little email will shape part of my future- and I find myself watching and waiting for it. Sometimes I get so caught up in the future. Do we gain something in weighing the future so heavily... or is it stealing our joy in today?