I just returned from a week’s vacation, and I can honestly say that it is the first one in which I have truly been able to relax.
The average vacation is not one hundred percent leisure and endless carefree hours (especially for parents), but planning and common sense can make the process easier whether you are a single traveler or a family of four. I started the process early, and from prior experience was able to keep my packing to a minimum (and the return trip even less). My goal was to eat out for dinner, so with my brunch schedule already accounted for, my provisions took up one bag.
I brought my journal and a crochet project, along with my writing tools. My amusement came mostly from where I was staying, walking and enjoying the various joys of a different place after a winter of unmelting piles of snow.
I had towels and sheets I keep for just the vacation, which took up one bag. My carry-on bag was already outfitted with my basic flip-flops, sun hat, and various swim gear, and I added daily clothes on top. In the end I only needed to make three trips from the car, and it took me about twenty minutes to unpack and set up.
What truly surprised me was how well I slept. Without the pending knell of the alarm to answer to, I found restorative rest every morning, which was a prescription no doctor can truly offer if the mind and body are unwilling. Even though the room was as light as mine at home is dark, and sounds unfamiliar to me were easily heard, I found that this past week was helpful beyond the cost of the week. I hadn’t truly realized how the weeks of work and driving (which increased when I was asked to return to the office in February at the height of the brutal winter) had enervated my spirit.
Now that I’m back home and anticipating the catching up I will need to do (including an amazing amount of laundry in spite of the little I took with me), I realize that such respites are even more necessary at my age, and I will be sure to find another week of rest this year. Whether I stay home or go elsewhere, I know that I owe myself a break from the ordinary.
Happy summer everybody.
Susan's Scribblings the Blog 