Watchin' all my days like birds, taking off in flight Wondering if they will ever stay, where everything's alright? But for now I'm staring at a dark cold cup of Jo' Longing for the next time, when I'm able to go, able to go I've got the blues, the post-vacation blues (sung to the Memphis Blues) Have you ever went to the dollar store on a lazy Tuesday afternoon to buy some paper towel; and while you are waiting in the check-out line, you notice that candy bar is staring you in the face saying, "Eat Me?" As you contemplate the tasty chocolate and creamy caramel cascading down your gullet; you know that the enjoyment of the taste, while it's going to be yummy, won't last long.
You know that after a few minutes, you will regret eating it because you will have to pay for it. Don't you hate that feeling? Sometimes I feel that way about vacation: You need to take the time off, it's healthy to set aside life for awhile; but somewhere in the back of your mind, you know you will have to pay for it! Life is so fleeting - - it goes by so fast; and somehow vacation seems to be on warp drive. You blink, and it's over. And then when you get back to the normal routine, it feels like everything has fallen apart while you were gone. You have to work three times harder just to catch up. Vacation always seems to tire you out more than normal life; it really is hard to get back into the groove. You see, "I've got the Post-Vacation Blues." So how is a person supposed to get over it? I have two suggestions: (1) Go Back on Vacation: Sounds great doesn't it? So does eating another chocolate bar, right? That is until it lands in your stomach and it causes you to feel like a bloated whale where you don't want to get off the couch. As Confucius say, "Too much vacation turn man into slug." So what is the other option? (2) Thank God for the Gift he gave you: Vacation is a gift from him, not a way of life. When you expect things, "I NEED more time off...I NEED to be left alone....I NEED" - - you start demanding from him, and expectation grows into bitterness of soul. Vacation is an undeserved gift and we need to really say, "Thanks God!" It sounds so simple, but let me tell you, that small perspective change makes all the difference in the world. When I expect things, I get mad when they are gone. But when I see my week off with my family as a gift, and time to unwind as a Sabbath break, all I can do is appreciate the love God has for me. He really is good. He really is kind. But never, and I mean never, act like you deserve that kindness. One of the scariest chapters in the whole Bible is Deuteronomy 8:1-18. It warns us, "Be careful that you do not forget the Lord you God...otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied...your heart may become proud and you will forget the Lord your God." Vacation should never be a time to demand, but to remember how kind God is to give you sooo much. Tragically, in Deuteronomy 32:15 it says that Israel did forget and they "waxed fat and kicked." That means they forgot all that God did and demanded more. People who eat too many chocolate bars sooner or later will 'wax fat and kick." People who demand more and more vacation, more and more time off, more and more leisure, better be careful - - because they too may start 'waxing fat.' I changed my tune: no longer do I sing the blues, but I have gone back to the simple and sweet song of "Coom-By-Ya!"
5 Comments
Art
7/14/2014 02:40:01 am
I love the night before vacation starts and I hate the night before I go back to work. Vacations are a gift!
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Christopher Weeks
7/14/2014 04:24:14 am
I hear ya!
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Char
7/14/2014 07:06:25 am
Life is a gift. I look at vacation as a bonus. Like the whipped cream on top of a sundae.
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Christopher Weeks
7/14/2014 07:11:29 am
Mmmm, mmm, good!
Reply
Chris Koning
7/14/2014 08:31:05 pm
You said it Brother! Knowing that each hour away on vacation is a "gift from God" makes each minute more precious, and allows the Spirit to renew your soul.
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