When Anne was in preschool we saw early signs of "trouble" with a big "T". She was bright, artistic, emotional, and strong willed. I was reading about the failure of American youths not graduating from High School and I was concerned.
As Anne heading for 4, we saw the first hints trouble. After numerous calls from pre-school about Anne acting out, I made a pact with my then 5 year old. She loves animals and still does. "If you graduate from High School, I will take you on an African Safari." Did I tell you she was smart? I went to pick her up from pre-school at the College of the Crayons (she was later asked to leave), her teacher asked me, are you really taking Anne to Africa? I explained this was for when she graduated from High School and not this year. She has been reminding me of that promise every year since.
After being expelled from Middle School and sending Anne to "Special School", I was wondering if I still needed to keep planning. Anne was allowed to resume "normal" status at High School. It was better but there was still a underlaying question. She was good student, but still struggling to handling her strong emotions. I added a "qualified" - "You have to graduate from a normal High School.
I work at Intel and as a employee, I am entitled to 1 sabbatical every 7 years. A sabbatical consists of 8 weeks of paid vacation on top of my regular vacation. In 2009 when Anne graduated, I was eligible for sabbatical #3. Then the world economy tanked, my stocks dropped, my 401 dropped, my house value dropped.
Ken and I always have animals. It is one of those things that brought us together. It was his dog Bentley that won be over. He was the smartest, coolest dog...I miss him. 2004 Ken got into falconery and our animal collection skyrocketed. We went from 2 dogs and 1 bird and reptiles. We went to 6 bird of prey, 4 dogs, reptiles, quails, pigeons and mice. Trying to find someone qualified to watch our menagerie became as real issue. We stopped our annual 1 week vacations and opted for shorter trips closer to home. RV rentals, taking the animals with us or Anne and I talking off earlier and Ken joining later.
We began wondering if an African safari would be a good plan both financially and logistically. In 2009, Anne graduated, with honors from Santa Teresa High School and was accepted at UC Davis. We were so proud. I started talking to Anne about the upcoming trip and brought up our concerns. Did I tell you how proud I am of her? She said she understood and could wait if we needed to, after all we are paying for college too. I started thinking of not going.
With Anne graduating, I was a proud parent. I have told this story about the promise of Africa and the importance of goal setting for parents. My co-worker said, "Looks like Anne earned her trip.", feelings of guilt and not following through flooded in. I pride myself on keeping promises and this is a big one.
I rethought the earlier decision and after many restless nights reviewing finances and logistics, I made the decision the trip was back on. Ken could not commit and after I started researching the trip, I had to make a decision. Only August was still available. I found a trip with 5 spaces with the itinerary that I was interested in seeing. I booked 2. Figuring if Ken and work out the animal logistics we can get another spot. He could not work out the animal care. So Anne and I are heading out to Africa.
Anne and I are on our way to africa on August 3rd.
