Famous author, Wallace Stegner once said, “It should not be denied… that being footloose has always exhilarated us. It is associated in our minds with escape from history and oppression and law and irksome obligations, with absolute freedom….
This is the essence of the American mind. We long to escape. Our bucket lists are filled with dreams of visiting exotic places. Besides freedom, our souls pine for scenic mountain vistas, quiet forests filled with ancient trees, vast colorful canyons, rolling rivers, laughing waterfalls and sandy beaches.
We save. We plan. We enjoy…. for a week. Then we repeat. What do we do with our other 51 weeks? What we don’t need is more vacation time. We need a new perspective. We desire a vacation lifestyle. We need each week to be filled with bucket list opportunities! You need one day every week to recharge. But how? What if I told you the exotic lifestyle was right in your own Illinois’ backyard? What if you used at least one day each week to recharge or to “vacation” from your work?
Right. Illinois? The midwest? Last time I checked, Illinois was as flat as the our native son’s five dollar bill. And there really isn’t much time to relax. According to PEW research, the trend is for Americans to take less vacation every year. And with our hyper-connectivity, we haven’t even left the office, when we leave the office.
First, we need to cultivate an attitude of gratefulness and appreciation for beauty in the seemingly ordinary.
I’m here to tell you. It’s all about perspective and dedication. First, we need to cultivate an attitude of gratefulness and appreciation for beauty in the seemingly ordinary. Second, we need to dedicate time to stopping to smell the roses. The speed of our lives causes us to focus on the macro and we don’t slow down on our one week vacations either. If we dedicate time to stop or slow down once per week, we can open up countless opportunities to see wonderful things in the micro.
I’m here to help. I’ve been there. Working for the weekend. Wishing my life away for that week in Yellowstone. But I’ve learned, the Midwest is best. And I’d add, JessieMarieStudio’s tagline: Who needs SoCal when you’ve got SoILL?
So set the bar low (as in micro) and let’s go, go, go!
“It’s time to leave this town, it’s time to steal away, Let’s go get lost, somewhere in the USA!” Road Trippin’ by the RHCP
