the two sides of vacation

(by kristi bennett)

the upsides to coming home from vacation: ... actually, when you think of one, please let me know.

the downsides to coming home from vacation, the first of which can be seen at the top of this post: a jam-packed laundry room, busting at the seams with all our beach gear because our shed door, which was put on in the 1950s, no longer opens and closes unless it's an extreme emergency.

here's the second:

a lovely green grassy lawn full of weeds and sand, thanks to all the rain that apparently fell while we were safe and sound from it, tucked away in the sunny beachy world we were in for 7 days.

i found myself in a real funk yesterday. i think this was one of the best vacations we have ever been on. for those of you who have looked through my FB pictures of the trip (i keep them private, so if you want to see them feel free to friend me there!), it may look like it was just all dreams and starfish and mojitos...i just couldn't post sound bytes of our kids fighting every 5 minutes. geesh. they are in a serious not-getting-along phase that would be grating on even the most kind and patient soul, neither of which am i.

but the scenery muffled their harsh words to one another. it dulled anything negative that tried to creep into my mind: worries about my real life, about money or the future--it was magical. the sunsets, the sand, somewhere between flour and sugar and baby powder, the turquoise water--they were healing. the long visits with old friends, the smiles, hugs, kindness exchanged, we lapped them up.

now, to figure out how to transfer some of that vacation perspective to the here-and-now...as for now, though, i feel like the ugly part is having to come back to reality.