Vacation

Is it possible to miss something you've never had?  Like daydreaming about the sand beneath your toes and the casual wave of tall palm trees although never going farther than your land locked tri-state area.  The only thing you could have as a reference is perhaps the Travel Channel, glossy brochures offering exotic voyages, and the sandbox at your old school yard.  I suppose that's how I feel about love (yes, I know, I'm talking about it AGAIN but if I don't then my words/ideas/thoughts would be like NOS in a race car...yeah...anyways).  Sure, love looks and sounds great.  I look at a number of the happy couples I know, smiling, laughing, holding hands etc. looking all very happy ever after-ish; but relationships have much in common with those fabulous vacation destinations.  For example, the ride getting there may be bumpy, and there can be unexpected delays and costs.  Storms can form in an instant, out of nowhere, and wreak all sorts of havoc.  The people you travel with may have a lot of extra baggage.  On guided tours, other passengers can be quite bossy (especially if they've already been on this trip before), and try to offer unsolicited advice on your itinerary (not to mention if they are in your same 'hotel').  What if your traveling companion gets sick and has to 'go home' early?  What if they decide to explore with a different partner, maybe even a local?  I think of all those things too when I think about love, and so I stay home, safe and landlocked, silently promise that I'll visit the lake in the summer.  But I still keep those glossies, and I still watch those programs, and I still dream of sand between my toes.  Maybe one day.

*Please enjoy this paradisaical video by the talented Mary J. Blige*