Article Contributed on: 6/2/2009 5:18:21 PM
Summer is here, even if not officially, and it's time to start planning your getaway! We have recently returned from our first major vacation of 2009 and it reminded me of all the reasons why vacations are so healthy for individuals and families.
When done right, vacations can satisfy many of our deepest longings. We reconnect with our joy for discovery. We awaken our ability to dream. We share experiences with friends and family... or maybe complete strangers. We break from the mundane and deliberately seek out rejuvenation through a variety of means.
For some a vacation would not be complete without lots of late nights or yummy food. Others need quiet or the exhilaration of the outdoors. Some desire to see far away places or spend hours on end being pampered. Regardless of your "perfect" vacation, I can say with certainty that you need one! Most of us spend much too many hours working at the jobs we are, in fact, so fortunate to have.
You need a vacation because it gives you perspective. You see that there is more to life than work. You can find the person who you were designed to be. You may even realize (again) that you are blessed to have the spouse and children that you do. Shared experiences bond a family, and when you allow yourself to focus on them instead of work, you'll see the good that is already all around you.
You need a vacation because we were designed to experience joy. If you are not experiencing joy in your life, maybe it's time to take a vacation and see all of the things there are to be thankful for. I would argue that vacations are great for recharging so that you can continue to give when you return. When you are physically and mentally recharged, you have the energy to give of yourself that you simply do not when you are running on empty and stressed to the hilt.
Our most recent vacation to the Puget Sound was everything a vacation should be. We had tons of family time, we experienced new things and places together, we ate wonderful local food, and even found time to just sit and enjoy the beauty of the ocean and mountains. After a week of that, you can see that not all is wrong with the world.
And there is an irony too. Vacations are, in a sense, all about you. But when done right, I think they also help you to see that this life is
not all about you. The world doesn't stand still while you are gone. There are people and places in the locations we visit that would never change with or without us. Perspective is good. So are vacations. Go ahead, take one. Then tell us all about it!