Most of us would answer ‘yes’ to the question of whether or not we need a vacation. But, it’s hard to take a break from life’s responsibilities, so vacations are few and far between. How can we get the benefit of a vacation without ever leaving our neighborhood?
Do me a favor- Don’t rush through this article like you have somewhere else to be. Read it slowly and deliberately. Read it at conversation speed. For the next 5 minutes, you’re on vacation.
You do a lot of things while you’re on vacation that you don’t normally do at home. Some things-like surfing- require you to be in a setting that isn’t available in your every day life, but a lot of the most relaxing aspects of a vacation you can do everyday. You can see the sunset, eat a nice dinner, go for a leisurely walk, sit outside, and take lots of deep breaths, all at home. It’s hard to take the time to do this, though. There’s always something that needs to be done that takes priority over taking a minute to reset.
When you’re on vacation you generally take your time more than usual. You’re more likely to go for a meandering walk, where you’re not trying to get anywhere in particular.
Maybe you walk through the streets after dinner in order to take in the sites. There’s nowhere to get to, so there’s no hurry. You wear sandals a lot on vacation, even though they kind of hurt your feet. They just feel like a relaxing thing to do. You’re more likely to sit down on a patio and just stare at the scenery while you’re on vacation.
Vacations are a respite from everyday life.
When you’re on vacation you try to soak it all in, because you know your time is limited. You focus on the moment while you’re on vacation because you don’t want to miss a thing. Contrast this with your everyday life, which we mistakenly view as unlimited, and where our minds are anywhere but the present.
I’ve noticed most of the time on vacation is spent doing the same things you would at home. You’re sleeping, getting ready for the day, brushing your teeth, eating, drinking coffee, walking around, etc. There’s very few moments during a vacation that are strictly unique to that vacation. Your physical body feels most of the same stimuli that you do in everyday life.
How can we get this vacation feeling, while going about our day to day existence?
Having a vacation mindset at home
What if you made a conscious effort to have a vacation mindset in your day to day life? What if after a normal Tuesday evening dinner you took a stroll through your neighborhood and really took in the sites? Just pretend you’re on vacation and your neighborhood is only your neighborhood for the next week. Go out your front door and look up at the trees. It might be the first time you’ve really looked at them since you moved in. Notice the branches and the individual leaves. I’ve never really looked at a tree and been disappointed.
Walk down your drive, and pick a tree to just look at. Where it is right now is its entire existence. Fall, winter, spring and summer come and go. That specific tree stays put year after year. Each branch on that tree tells a story. You could spend a lifetime admiring a single tree if you really took it all in, and also if you were high enough.
I tried this approach and noticed how green the leaves on a tree right outside my bathroom window were. At a certain angle I could almost convince myself I was in an exotic location. There was nothing about any tree I’ve seen on vacation that was more beautiful than the tree right outside my bathroom window.
If I was in Thailand or Hawaii and I saw those leaves I would not think them out of place. I would think about how beautiful that tree is, and how lucky people who live there are to see that type of tree everyday.
I’m that person who is so lucky, but I rarely see that tree.
Do you ever look at trees in your day to day life and think about how beautiful they are. The more I’ve been thinking about mindfulness and what makes for a happy life, the more I try to be conscious of individual mundane moments. I try to look around me from time to time and really take in the sites that I pass everyday.
If I was on vacation to Portland I wouldn’t zone out while I drove from south Portland to North Portland, passing downtown as I went. I would open my eyes wide and really take it all in. Countless humans have lived and died without ever seeing something as breathtaking as Portland downtown as seen from I-5.
When you take a minute to appreciate the mundane, there’s nothing mundane about it. Most of the stress of our lives comes from worrying and hurrying. If you’re running late, it is what it is. You’re already late. Don’t spend your entire commute in a state of stress. Drive the speed limit. Look out the window and take in the fact you’re hurling across the city at a truly mind-bending speed. If you were born at any other time in history your daily commute would be a life-altering experience.
There’s a great article on Raptitude.com called How to walk across a parking lot. The general idea is life is full of mundane moments and everyone is hurrying through them, never stopping to appreciate anything. Instead of rushing across the parking lot, getting the mundane over as quickly as possible, enjoy the walk. It’s a thought provoking article and worth the read.
In our everyday lives we are in such a hurry that we jump from one activity to the next. SLOW. DOWN. Try to live at 3/4 speed for a few minutes. Try to be conscious of whatever it is you’re actually doing, even if it’s mundane. When you drink a glass of water, don’t think about work stresses or what might happen if you suddenly get sick and lose your job.
Think about drinking that glass of water. Notice the cold feeling as the water falls down your throat and disappears into your body. Notice the absence of thirst and the slight swelling in your belly. Look out the window and find a tree. Give yourself permission to spend thirty seconds just staring at it. The rest of the world will still be there when you’re done. Don’t hurry through the process, just enjoy the tree. Remember, you’re on vacation.
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You’re talking about practicing Mindfulness.
It’s something we’re teaching our students to do. It’s been scientifically shown to markedly lower stress and raise happiness.