Happiness is a leisurely breakfast…
One that you haven’t had to cook yourself.
We often race against the clock — to deliver on our day jobs, balancing work, life and children’s activities.
To relax, rejuvenate and recharge for the rigours of the New Year, we make it a point to take a few days out together as a family at the end of every year.
We call it an escape to nowhere!
Nothing elaborate, and our requirements are quite simple. A tidy family hotel, with good breakfast, a pool, preferably a hot tub and close to nature that we haven’t experienced before.
We check in to our haven of tranquillity for the next few days without an agenda. No calls, no emails, no deadlines — just to find some serenity in the midst of the chaos of everyday lives.
A leisurely breakfast is our opportunity as a family to break free from the monotony of our morning routine; an opportunity to savour each bite of familiarity with a pinch of new flavours thrown in from time to time.
Post breakfast, is usually a long relaxing walk amidst nature, experiencing the crisp winter air in our face and while actually listening to each other despite the relaxing sound of nature whispering in the background.
Our nine-year-old who often finds solace in books and television, revels in untold stories that unfold with each step of our walk and enthrals us with her innocent ideas.
Back at the hotel, is usually a relaxing swim in the pool to wash away the stress accumulated over months of graft. Every once in a while, the daughter would take a deep breath, dive into the unknown and resurface with newfound energy, as if to paint as deeper picture of our ordinary life!
We would usually end the aquatic adventure with a relaxing soak in a bubbling cauldron of warmth surrounded by rising steam and echoing laughter, where we actually experience the stress escaping our bodies leaving behind a sense of calm.
We take turns to choose the restaurant for the evening dinners; again making sure it is a bonding experience for all of us.
Very often, we take for granted the very same things that are of utmost significance to our wellbeing — family, laughter, togetherness…
Family is not just an important thing; for us it is everything!
As we drift into sleep with joy in our hearts and a prayer on our lips, I smile as I recall the words of John Lubbock — “Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.”
In fact, it is an essential investment to survive the madness of our busy lives!