Momentary Vacations
Vacations are not a mere luxury. It’s essential to take time away from the daily stresses of work, money, illness, family, societal strife, and our own internal issues. Times of rest and relaxation provide restoration, so we can return to resolve our issues or simply be more present with them. Yet, vacations as often defined can be out of reach. Pleasure travel to exotic places may be beyond stressed budgets. Caregiving, parenting, career, or other responsibilities may preclude time away. Times of societal upheaval may constrict our movements and choices. Our most difficult times are when we most need breaks. Yet they’re also the times in which breaks are hardest to find.
How to solve this dilemma? Again and again, I return to the wisdom of mindfulness teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. He had to answer that question as a monk in exile from the Vietnam War, facing unspeakable violence and injustice. His teachings of presence with simple stillness—of taking momentary vacations via a return to our breath—have guided countless many through perilous times. They can again assist us all in that way. I celebrate the depth of that simple wisdom; its integral role in our very nature.
Mindfulness reminds us that we breathe in every moment, regardless of what stressors may tighten our chest. Returning to focus on our breath—on deepening it just for this current breath we’re now taking—is a simple practice with profound impact. I learned from Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings how to breathe into momentary vacations, in the midst of ordinary tasks. When the traffic light is red, for example. When the phone rings, before answering. Between washing two different dishes. Before reading an essential yet stressful news article. Before reacting to someone’s insensitive comment. When the course of our lives and relationships often turns on tiny but vital choices, taking these momentary vacations can make all the difference in keeping centered and at peace in community. Momentary vacations can be as inwardly restorative as global travel. Also, they’re free.
Momentary returns to nature’s essence are central as well. We may not be able to travel today to majestic scenic reserves, but at every moment there is nature around and inside us with which to reconnect. One simple flower, whether gardened or wild, can return us to awareness of the miracles of natural beauty. To take a momentary vacation to simply appreciate one flower can reconnect us to the miracle of life’s entirety. Reflected in each flower’s essence are the miracles of rain, growth, sky, our own awareness. Every bloom reflects the delicate weave of all life, which has risen as part of a greater one.
Pausing for a momentary vacation now, I remember two opposing viewpoints. The first is the old bumper sticker, once prevalent: “If you aren’t outraged, you aren’t paying attention.” I also remember the counterpoint put into song by my late musician friend Erika Luckett and her partner Lisa Ferraro: “If you aren’t in awe, you aren’t paying attention.” It is that awe to which I return my attention, when outrage has again damaged my ability to stay balanced with beauty.
Momentary vacations don’t even take time. We’re breathing anyway. We’re waiting in the checkout line behind others. We’re on hold, attempting to reach customer service. We’re awaiting a friend’s arrival. The repairman has yet to show up. The flowers are blooming, right by the sidewalk where we’re walking. We might as well notice the beauty at our feet and the song of the wind.
All in all, momentary vacations aren’t a turning away from our challenges, but a way to approach difficulties with beauty born of strength. They assist us in bringing our best into facing those challenges. All that too can be seen and celebrated within one flower, in the space of one deepened breath.