THAT HOLIDAY FEELING

What is it about Holidays that lifts our spirits, puts a spring in our step and anticipation in our hearts.

It may be the lure of exotic places and the expectation of seeing new things and people. For certain, however long our holiday, it has something to do with leaving our daily lives and routine behind.

Much of my life has been lived in a large city. Sometimes I traveled to other large cities also. My assault on New York, for that is how I saw it, ended up being a list that was 8 pages long. I had the sore feet to prove it.

As I have done another time recently, I turned around and went back to New York again a few months later to fill in some gaps (and share the experience with my youngest sister). There is something about the energy of big cities, which never sleep, that is both stimulating and overwhelming. However, you do not go to visit them for a rest. In fact, you need a rest after you visit them.

Another kind of holiday entirely is the Beach Holiday. As I mentioned above, I live in a large (Canadian) city. We have one of The Great Lakes (Ontario) as our southern border so I was used to the way lakes behave(d). Usually my vacation was to be in a different kind of place.

At first I found going to the Ocean for vacations wonderful. The first trip however, although south to Florida was inland and I didn’t see much Ocean closeup. The air when disembarking from my first plane ride was lovely but the ocean was a walk away and lying at the edge was nice but nothing like what I experienced on later trips.

The second and later trips were to the Caribbean and wading into the Ocean fully clothed (because the bags were delayed) seemed like a good idea at the time and showed me that I was pretty young and pretty happy at the change of climate and all of that gorgeous shallow aqua water. Many such trips followed because Winter Vacations are very desirable, and even worth saving up all year for, when it is freezing up north.

With my husband our travel plans changed and we both seemed happy in mountainous areas of North America as well as by the Atlantic Ocean. I guess being happy together had a lot to do with this; so did Fear of Flying.

Since 2006, when I began considering my life in Bucket Lists, and overcame a 20 year Fear of Flying, Europe has beckoned. I have now gone on some trips that were a combination of visiting family members (by marriage) and self exploration of big cities and very famous towns. More recently multi-country guided excursions have led me around 2440 km. of France, then Spain, and now eastward along the Mediterranean and to a kaleidosope of wonderful sunny places, often very different from my own city.

What remains after the Holiday is over is often as interesting as the Holiday itself. This year, I turned around and as I did twice before in my life, went back a few months later. I am happy to say that it was worth it since the second trip had some of the same places in it but also gave me London and Paris again, at least a year ahead of when I might have dreamed it possible.

While I think it is true that we are different when we are on Holiday in that we are more relaxed and at ease, we also like a Snail, carry our lives around with us.

Giving people, give. Selfish people declare that they are on holiday and have told their families not to expect anything because it is not their holiday. Good people are good; friendly people are friendly. Unfriendly people and unhappy people are soon seen as obviously unfriendly and/or unhappy.

In other words, do not think you are leaving everything behind, because you take what you are with you. You still come back to the face in the mirror and the life you left behind.

You can change, if you are ready to. You can let new places and people come into your life and share your experiences and a bit of your lives with each other. If you do, you give yourself a chance to not only see how other people live, but also discover how your life differs from that of people in other places.

What you bring home with you is what you were willing to bring back into your life. In my case, I swore I would eat only the Mediterranean diet. Well, I thought I would. Instead, I have added elements of it and really enjoy the new additions. 

I also enjoy the new additions to my perspective, the new people I have added to my friends and especially the lighter steps I take because I opened up my world to new people and experiences. That is the lasting legacy of a holiday. You come back the same person, but a little different. In my case, hopefully a little better and more open and relaxed.