“A scheme of which every part promises delight can never be successful; and general disappointment is only warded off by the defense of some little peculiar vexation.”
Jane Austen (1775 – 1817)
Perhaps it’s the anticipation of a particular event that makes the wait worth while. No matter how it is imagined, rarely does it play out to be the same as what was imagined.
I wonder if our inability to anticipate with baited breath: a birthday, Christmas or other holiday or a special event; is what takes the joy out of living. When we’re children the ever perfect dream of what awaits under the tree, makes every day nearly unbearable while waiting for the magic of Christmas.
And then, when the day finally arrivesm, it’s with sheer delight that we leap out of bed at the crack of dawn and run to the tree, staring in awe . . . the absolute joy can never be replicated as we become adults.
Oddly enough, it’s as we become adults we so desperately need that joy in our lives to keep the hope alive.