My parents approached vacations differently. My dad loved his work and tended to over-commit. So he put in 70-80 hour weeks during my childhood, and we didn’t see much of him.

When Mom convinced him to take some time off, he then felt a kind of obligation to fill up our vacations with as much touring as possible. He wanted to use up all his off time doing and achieving things. My mom wanted to relax. She worked hard, too, and on vacation, she wanted to tour sedately, take her time, put her feet up. She understood the value of rest.

I have scheduled the month of July for my remaining vacation time, and professional study leave. Since I have been driving so much during my work year, I am looking forward to being at home and doing some fun things in the Birmingham area. I also have a long list of “deferred maintenance” tasks in our house. And I have online workshops and a stack of books ready to inform and hone my professional skills.

So I will be channeling both my parents, trying to achieve certain goals and taking important time for physical & mental rest.

I hope your summer brings you similar opportunities! See you in August!

In Wisdom & Grace,

Rev. Ruth