Holidays are for life, not just for summer
It’s that time of year again when we all de-camp for sunnier climes. We've spent ages deciding where to go - we talked to friends about where they’d been, we researched, we heard things on the grapevine, we googled, we read the Guardian/Telegraph/Times travel supplements. In short, we obsessed about getting the absolute perfect location. And it’s not difficult to understand why. In an increasingly stressful world we hanker after our time out. It’s the only month a year that we can call our own so we want to make it perfect. We crave some relaxation and want to fast forward everything in-between and just get to it.
The week before we go we desperately try to do all those things we've been putting off at work and get our in-box down to zero (yeah right). At the same time we're making sure we have everything we need to pack and that we can actually fit it into a suitcase. Oh, and that the weight won't give us a hernia/extra luggage costs. Sun cream, bite cream, calpol, chargers, travel plugs, little itty-bitty bottles with shampoo decanted into them that never actually hold enough, ear plugs (you never know when you might need them), anti-histamines, aloe vera - the list is long. And that's before you've even packed your clothes. And then there's all that last minute shopping because you've realised at the 11th hour that those shorts really don't fit you anymore, and you still can't locate the bottom half of your bikini.
And when we finally get on holiday we ENJOY it, partly because we’ve decided that we WILL. Because we’ve put so much energy into it and it’s cost so much money that we dare not find fault with it. Turquoise sea? Check. Sunshine? Check. All-inclusive? Check. Over-eating? Check. What more could we possibly need?
The good thing about holidays is that they give us an opportunity to see new things, to get some variety, to broaden our horizons. They offer a break from the norm. But they can often be about escapism from a normal life that you eventually have to go back to. Like a meditation session that is relaxing while you’re in it but quickly forgotten as soon as you step back into the real world.
Rather than this ritual of enjoying four weeks of the year and wishing away and rushing through the other 48, we need another way. We need a way of instilling the concept of holiday relaxation and restoration of the spirit into our daily lives. Because, quite simply, life is too short to not be happy and we're actually a lot more effective at everything when we're more relaxed. And by relaxation, I don't mean vegetating in front of a box set every night. It might seem relaxing because your brain can switch off, but it's not exactly the stuff of holiday legend. We need a way of building in more of the types of things we'd do on holiday and the different experiences we seek out into our every day schedules.
These things don't have to break the bank. Last weekend we went to Bournemouth for the weekend and stayed in a budget hotel. The kids loved swimming in the sea and tipping me off an inflatable ring (the latter was completely undignified, but I suppose that was why they enjoyed it so much). This weekend we are going kayaking on a local river and maybe fruit picking in the afternoon - both things I've never done before. Maybe I could introduce some friends to join us for the kayaking and maybe suggest a picnic?
I've now made myself a list of all the activities we could do at the weekends throughout the different seasons. But why just wait for the weekends to be relaxed? I may introduce 'Holiday Wednesdays', where we go out in the evening for a walk to a local pub for a family dinner, or we go to an art gallery that stays open late, or we book cheap tickets to see a show, or I just sit and read outside in the garden with a gin and tonic. These are the kinds of things I make time to do on holiday but not in 'normal' life.
I’m going to make an effort to have a holiday all year long, not just for four weeks in the summer.
