It was good to have a break last week. As I looked at my vacation time recently, I saw that I would have enough to take an entire week leading up and including the Memorial Day weekend. It was a great experience to have eight days off.
Here are a few things I learned, as well as a few challenges.
1. Being a dad is very enjoyable.
I really enjoyed extra time with our kids last week. I do enjoy the kids – interacting with them, playing games with them and the like. It’s a priority that is at the top of the list for a Christian man and one I intend to continue to develop in my life. I want to find lots of ways to enjoy my children and the time I have with them.
2. Our two older children love their younger sister.
I praise God for the loving spirit our two oldest children have toward their (sometimes difficult) younger sister. They both gave of themselves sacrificially during the time I was off and I finally had the time to pause and reflect on all of it. We can only pray this will continue and grow.
3. Time off reduces stress.
Throughout the time I had off, I was stressed very little. Even the things that did go wrong really didn’t seem to matter as much. Simply being freed from regular responsibilities made the time seem longer and more meaningful. My stress level really stayed low overall. Part of this was probably because I got to eat a lot of my favorite foods.
4. I enjoyed being available at home.
This is a big struggle for me throughout the average week. I get tired and I always feel like I want to do more than I do at home. So, for an extended stretch, I felt like I was able to keep up on helping in meaningful ways with the day to day stuff around the house.
5. I actually had time to watch movies.
I watched two films. Twelve Years A Slave was a brutal account of American slavery; a truly sobering tale. 42 told a great story about an admirable man. I felt somehow that they didn’t detail as much as they could have. Seemed too rosy to me. That’s all for my movie reviews.
Think. Do you enjoy your time off? Do you have certain priorities as you approach time away from regular responsibilities?
Act. Be prepared to make the most of your time. Set priorities to use the time given to you and use it well!