From exertion to relaxation

(before, during and after your holiday)

From exertion to relaxation

From exertion to relaxation (before, during and after your holiday), I choose the transition. Not only on holiday but also around it. As I write this, many people are already back from vacation. I, on the other hand, can still leave – a luxury that comes with adult children who have long since left home. No more school holidays around which everything has to be planned. But of course that has not always been the case.

When I was still employed and in the middle of the hustle and bustle, the transition from work to vacation often felt anything but relaxed. I remember those first days of vacation well: irritable, restless, tired. It was only after about ten days that I started to land a bit. Then there might have been a week left in which I could really relax. Do you recognize that?

In those years I was not so aware of my own limits, needs or pitfalls. And also not from the fact that I actually went beyond my own limits for weeks before the suitcases were even packed.

In addition, there were the holidays in which we as a family – spread over two countries – mainly took the opportunity to visit family. Super valuable, but not always soothing. And when I later went on holiday alone with my youngest son, I wanted it to be beautiful so badly that my own expectations often got in the way. How did he experience those holidays? Maybe I should ask him that.

Before the Holiday – letting go starts at home

In the meantime, I have learned that relaxation does not start on location, but even before that. In how I finish, pack, let go. How I listen to what my body indicates. How do I avoid getting stuck in a "everything-must-be-done-quickly" mode until the day of departure. I really take the time for that now – and I let go of wanting to do it perfectly more and more often.

During the holidays – don't force, but trust

Together with my love, I am leaving out of season this time. Blissfully quiet. No crowded beaches or overcrowded schedules. We feel each other well, which means that I can really sink into relaxation. Without pressure, without purpose. Just being. And yes, sometimes that also means: an afternoon nap instead of an outing. Or reading a book in silence, instead of having hours of conversations. That too is connection.

After the holidays – coming home to myself

I try not to idealize the return. Of course I hope for a clean and tidy house, but I now know that coming home to myself is more important than coming home to a perfect house. I want to be able to feel: I am charged. I'm still with myself. And I have an influence on that. Because how holidays once were – chaotic, overcrowded, exhausted – I don't want to celebrate them like that anymore.

I choose the transition from effort to relaxation.

Not only on holiday, but also around it. And I hope that you can also experience that, in your way, in your rhythm. Whether you're going, just back, or still unsure whether you're 'worth it' to take a break: remember that you can also choose rest.

Warm regards,

Caroline