A break in the monotony.
It doesn’t take much for a routine to become boring. These days we’re all stuck in a seemingly never-ending cycle of waking up, punching the clock, winding down with the same tired past times, and repeat. At our nine-to-fives, the repetitive grind of doing the same things over and over can become even more taxing (and that’s before taxes are taken out!)
It may not seem like much, but an annual chance to just get away from it all can do wonders for our mental health. Taking a much-needed weekend or two gives us the chance to recharge our batteries, renew our creativity, and recalibrate our sights. The opportunity to get out of town for a while creates a distance between us and our problems, our responsibilities, and the things in our lives that may be causing us stress.
At home we may be overworked, overwhelmed, and underappreciated but tubing down the river or paddling across the lake, we’re all just looking to share in a bit of the joy of the human experience.
Formulating new traditions.
When we pack up the car for a family vacation, what we’re really enjoying is a sense of tradition. Vacation destinations have held the same majestic allure for generations. Couples can revisit old stomping grounds, grandparents can take their grandkids to the top of the Ferris wheel for the first time, and siblings can fight over which souvenir was the coolest find.
The same reason we never grow tired of putting up a tree in December or having the same meal over and over on Thanksgiving is exactly why the continued traditions we form over vacation hold a special place in our hearts, no matter how many times we’ve seen the magic trick performed.
Memories to last a lifetime.
Vacations aren’t always beach bound and mouse-eared, sometimes the getaways that we remember the most are the simpler times. It’s the time together as a family that creates the longest lasting impact.
The chance to put aside our busy work schedules, put life on hold, and gather together to focus on quality time makes any trip to the lake just as valuable as a cruise to the other side of the world. Once we get back into the swing of the status quo, those memories formed with those closest to us, will resonate with the joy that came with those fleeting few days.
When we look back on the pictures captured during these sunburned, matching shirt moments, what we’re really seeing is the visual snapshot of a feeling we’ll spend every summer thereafter rowing on the lake or ziplining over the trees.
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