The Almost Heres of Life

October 26, 2014
Day 179

I can't tell you how often I've heard some version of the phrase, "I'm so glad ____ is almost here", or "I can't believe ____ is almost here".  The phrase might be about the weekend, or Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year's, or even just spring, summer, fall, winter, or any number of occasions.

Whether we realize it or not, we live in this "almost here" mentality constantly, and if nothing else, it shows us how much we're always looking forward...which can often be a very good thing.

For some people though, they're not looking forward to the holidays, or to winter, or to anything at all.  They don't want to think about what comes next, because they haven't resolved where things are right now.  And that's completely understandable.  Others don't look forward because they can't look forward.  They're dealing with a loved one's imminent death, or possibly their own.  What will happen next Christmas or next summer doesn't bring them any joy at all, because they know life will be forever changed by then.

The almost heres of life are healthy, for the most part, especially when we want to unstick ourselves or others from the seriousness of a situation.  We might be crying our eyes out at a funeral, or stressing over a work situation, but just looking forward to a vacation that's almost here can almost instantly make us feel better. 

This week, I've got what will be (I hope) the last day or two of jury duty.  The conclusion of my "sentence" is almost here!  And for me, it will also be the end of a much larger time period.  From around August 12th until mid-October, Andy and I didn't have any completely normal weeks.  We were visiting Andy's Uncle Fai in the ICU every day up until his recent death.  And just as the week of wakes and funerals for my Aunt Nancy and Andy's Uncle Fai concluded, I had to call in for jury duty, which I began last Monday.  So for me right now, I know a return to some version of normality is now, finally, "almost here".

The almost heres of life are constant.  Once the almost heres of pre-Halloween season are over on October 31st, the almost heres of Thanksgiving will start right up, and then the almost heres of December and January will take right over after that, and then the almost here of the Super Bowl, the Oscars, and so on until, well, until forever.  There's literally always something else to make us think about with an "almost here".

The end of this reflection is almost here. 

And now it's here.  Just like that.  Hey, guess what?!  Tomorrow's reflection is almost here!