How to get that vacation feeling, without going on vacation.
The morning sun softly filtered through the trees.
A warm breeze brushing past your face.
The quiet of a place not yet fully awake while sounds of life begin to stir in the distance.
The day ahead, full of possibility and spaciousness, brings a sense of calm and curiosity.
What comes to your mind when you think of “that vacation feeling”?
What do you…
see, hear, feel, sense,
touch, and smell?
This morning has the faintest feeling of vacation to it for no real reason at all. It’s just a feeling I can get from time to time that comes seemingly out of the blue and with no logical thing to tie it to.
It has been one hour since waking up. I’ve gotten dressed and made my way from the bed to the kitchen and now to the living room. I take a seat in my usual writing chair by the window after having made my first cup of iced coffee, and the feeling washes over me instantly.
Music is softly streaming through the speakers. The windows are both wide open, thanks to the brief break in the heat and humidity we’ve been having. But the air is still too stagnant, so I turn on the little fan that sits on the window sill, which is pointed directly at me, now blowing the temperate 72 degree air onto my face.
I hear birds chirping in the trees outside and the sound of someone doing some sort of construction nearby, nothing overly intrusive, it sounds like a saw running. It’s a perfectly normal Tuesday in July. A short work week with a major summer holiday coming up, which I’m sure adds to that feeling of vacation brewing in the air even though I’m not planning to go anywhere for the long holiday weekend.
It’s a day where I’m lucky enough to only have only one appointment on the calendar, a peer reading group with colleagues, and the rest of the day free. I’m sure I’ll fill the rest of it with usual tasks. Things like grocery shopping, working on writing, and other admin tasks that need tending to before a break.
But for a few moments, sitting here and sipping my coffee, looking out the window and listening to the sounds around me, it feels like I could be on vacation. If I close my eyes, I can imagine having this whole week free of responsibilities and tasks, and I bask in the spaciousness. I can imagine that instead of being in my Brooklyn apartment, I might actually be somewhere with even more trees and green grass stretching far and wide in front of me when I step outside.
This is what vacation feels like…
Just being and not having to do anything.
My body feels more relaxed, calm, and at ease too. The same feelings you get when on vacation.
Could it actually be the fact that I didn’t sleep great and was awake from the hours of 3:00am-5:30am before falling asleep again? Sure, it could be. But rather than focus on that I simply embrace it.
My mind also feels quiet, open, and receptive. Simply taking in the world, sounds, and energy of the space around me.
This is what vacation feels like. Just being and not having to do anything or be anywhere other than here.
I recently pitched an article that was looking for quotes from mental health professionals on tips people could use to help them have that vacation feeling without going on vacation. It’s an article that I’ve considered writing myself many times before but never got around to, till now.
The author didn’t end up using my quote, and that’s okay. I know what I shared at the time was my go-to response, and one that I imagine other therapists could have shared as well. It was a guided five-senses visualization exercise I often use with clients and recorded as a guided meditation not too long ago. While I believe it’s a great way to practice getting that feeling of being on vacation if you let yourself fully immerse in it, I don’t think my quote truly captured the feeling itself. Nor did I talk about how sometimes that feeling can just happen all on its own, like it is for me now.
So, how can I create the feeling of being on vacation without a $1000 credit card bill or 5-hour plane ride?
Sometimes you don’t have to do anything to recreate that vacation feeling when you’re living your normal life. You might just find yourself stumbling into it thanks to an aligned set of external or internal experiences all coming together in perfect unison.
And when that happens your job is to simply notice it and let yourself be with it for as long as possible. To luxuriate in the experience, just like you would luxuriate in the beauty around you, soaking in the sun on a beach lounger, or waves crashing on the shore.
The moment might only last a few seconds, or you might find that you can stretch it out for 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or even longer. Maybe it will come and go throughout the day, and you can keep re-experiencing it over and over again in micro moments. What a gift!
Writing this piece has helped me now stay in it for far longer than I imagine I would have if I’d instead picked up the book I’m supposed to finish reading before my group starts in a few hours.
The thing is, something will always come along that will pull you out of that moment.
Nothing lasts forever, right?
But if you can let yourself soak it in like a sponge when the moment arises, that is a moment of mindfulness.
And over time, all those little moments of mindfulness can help add up to a more mindful, more easeful, more enjoyable life, simply by being with what is already around you.
What a nice break for the mind and system, to just be.
