A
vacation can be an ideal time to deepen, strengthen and bring
inspiration to relationships and family. It is important to remember
this when planning and taking off on your vacation.
Vacations
do not have to cost a lot of money to be wonderful. Every year Barry
and I have taken a summer vacation with our children and the major
expense has mostly been gas and groceries. We go to out of the way
camping places and keep things simple. These vacations are extremely
rewarding and hold dear and special memories over the years. The
important thing is not where you go and what you do, but that you go
somewhere to change your environment and daily schedule, and allow
quality time with each other.
There is a very
funny old Tom Hanks movie called “The Burbs.” In the movie Tom Hanks is a
suburbanite who is on vacation for one week from work. His wife wants
to go somewhere to get away so that they can relax together and have
fun. Tom Hanks’ character insists that he can easily relax at home and
that he doesn’t need to go to some lake to have fun. The week consists
of a wild and hilarious series of events in the neighborhood that are
anything but relaxing. A change in environment helps to bring about an
inner change in perception and allows us to see our lives in a new way.
Some
people are so in need of a vacation and have so little time to have
one, that they plan a hectic pace hoping to get in a much as possible in
the short amount of time they have available. Often they are more tired
after the vacation than before. So creating time and space for leisure
and rest are also important.
As I look over
the vacations our family has taken together the most important
ingredient has been taking time to listen to one another. Busy school
and homework schedules and work don’t always allow for deep
conversations. So during our vacations we allowed plenty of time to
listen to our children. We encouraged them to talk about their hopes and
dreams and feelings. We also told them about ours. We got to know each
other in a way that the school year didn’t allow. We reminisced about
funny events from the previous year allowing ourselves the time to
really laugh. Years later I don’t remember the scenery as much as I
remember a close time of sharing around the campfire. I don’t remember a
particular hike or event as much as I remember the fun that we all felt
from laughing together. After the children were nestled in the tent and
sound asleep, Barry and I would have deep conversations. Many of our
major life decisions were made at these times. The inspirations for all
of our books came out of such a simple setting.
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