Heather Lees - Liminality and my Dad

My dad has always talked about wanting to go to the Grand Canyon. However, when asked "why" he would always say "it is just something I need to do in my life." Never quite understanding what that meant, I didn't take it very seriously and my entire family would just laugh off the idea because none of us were too interested in the idea. Now I realize, though, that this is a particular journey that he wants to complete and it would give him a sense of liminality.

Maybe what my father really wants is to be able to say he's done it, kind of like people who through hike the Appalachian Trail. This would be his completion of a particular phase in his life, like a threshold to the next step. We have been to many places, but now I understand that going to the Grand Canyon means more to my father than just a vacation. In the summer of 2011, my father and I have finally planned a trip to actually do this. This is going to be a journey that both of us will experience together, and maybe that means we will both experience a liminal state and psychologically move on to the next portion of our lives. For me, that would mean to finally complete something all the way through. I am excited to go on this journey with him, and I know that the step that follows will be all the more exciting.