Ahhh…. sweet summer holidays

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The Journal staff returned to work last week after our annual two weeks shutdown of production. While a few of us were on call to cover events during this time, a big ‘thank you’ goes out to the public for filling in some of the gaps.

The Journal staff returned to work last week after our annual two weeks shutdown of production. While a few of us were on call to cover events during this time, a big ‘thank you’ goes out to the public for filling in some of the gaps.
Since many people are having this return-to-work experience, take a moment to consider the holiday frame of mind. Because if you are reading this, you probably aren’t on vacation and wish you were.
This holiday frame of mind – some of it, anyhow – can be brought into everyday life. How can you keep your mind on vacation and feeling rested and refreshed, even when you’re not lounging by the lake?
The holiday mindset is a way of looking at the world that is at once easier and more vivid than the everyday view of life. While on vacation you view things more clearly and appreciate them more deeply, deliberately, and worry less about what you are doing at any moment. If it’s reading on the beach, fine; sleeping till 9am, also fine; walking rather than driving to the store, completely fine.
Now that you are back at work, make an effort not to rush out the door in the morning with a coffee to drink in the car; savour the cup outdoors, even if it’s only for a few minutes, and listen to the birds singing. Stop to enjoy the beauty around you.
Time moves slower and days are longer on holidays. This is because we’re usually doing fewer things that make time zip by, and also looking less often at our time-keepers. If you are mindful enough, you can make time stop altogether and just be in the moment. This can be done from the comfort of your work station or at home; it just requires intention, and setting aside the fierce urgency of the cell phone and email.
Holidays officially confer permission for indulging in ice cream. What about ducking out from work for a cone? That’s doable. Did you spend little time watching television while on holidays? Resist slipping back into that habit and because of the longer hours of daylight, even long hours back at work leave some leftover time to continue enjoying holiday activities, such as biking and swimming.
On holidays at the cottage, you wait for the sunset on a clear day. The wait is rewarded with a soft intake of breath and, perhaps, a silent prayer of thanks. A similar daily glory ‘back at work’ is available anywhere near one of Pontiac’s hundreds of waterways, or your favourite lookout. You might have to take a different route home, but make an effort to simply look at the sunset.
Welcome back, readers.

Nancy Hunt, Editor