The folks at Merriam-Webster define vacation as follows:
va·ca·tion
/vāˈkāSH(ə)n,vəˈkāSH(ə)n/
Noun
- an extended period of leisure and recreation, especially one spent away from home or in traveling.
In reality, it’s when you pick up your chaos at home, pack it in a car, sit in traffic for a while, and then unpack at your temporary destination. Then, after much effort to find a sunny place to spend your vacation, you drag your stuff to the beach and create shade.
In our case, the temporary destination is Baby Condo, my aunt’s place on the Jersey Shore. It’s small – only one bedroom – but it is right on the ocean and it is free, so it is ideal. After the three-hour journey turned into six, mostly thanks to construction in New York and the clogged Garden State Parkway, we arrived in time to have lunch with Aunt B and then settle in. We’ve already hit the beach a few times and have the redness in our fair Irish skin (yes, we used sunscreen) to prove it.
Today we might hit the boardwalk in Atlantic City, or we might play games, or we go back to the beach, but in true vacation mode, it does not matter. There is no plan. We are reading, playing cards, cooking together, and yes, on occasion, irritating each other with our closeness.
The best part for me – other than just being together – will come tomorrow morning around 4:20 am. That’s when the moon sets and we will be able to enjoy about an hour of the Perseid Meteor shower – an annual sky show viewed best away from city lights. The nearly full moon will hinder the show a bit this year, which is why we will need to rise early to get a glimpse of the sky while it is at its darkest. I did a dry run this morning and enjoyed a half dozen or so meteors when the hardness of the bed woke me around 4 am.
Then Wednesday night, following the vigil Mass of the Feast of the Assumption, the local pastor will hop in a boat and bless the waters of the Atlantic. The entire congregation walks with him to the shore and participates in the blessing. The kids love it and I love watching them enjoy the rituals of our faith.
Until next week…get some rest, enjoy your family, and unplug from the busyness of life.