I never imagined that we would be going to the mountains again on summer vacation. Last summer, due to the pandemic, it was our only choice.
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This summer, we had hoped to take our daughter on a big trip as a graduation gift. But, as I started to look into options, I realized the re-opening of travel had created new problems—higher prices, fewer flights, and many hurdles to face leaving and returning to the United States. So, after much deliberation, we chose to return again to the mountains.
In many ways it is as ideal in 2021 as it was in 2020. In 2020, the vacation helped break up the tedium and isolation of the pandemic. Now that the world is operating at warp speed again, this vacation is an escape from the rat race, from the treadmill we have jumped right back on without considering the consequences.
When you immerse yourself in nature—hiking, biking, kayaking—you see just how big and magnificent the world is. We are just itty bitty ants often running without a clear destination on our respective treadmills.
So, this vacation is about unplugging the treadmill. And who knows, maybe I’ll just leave it folded up against the wall and let it gather dust …
Amanda is the mom of two, a reporter for WRAL-TV and the author of several books including some on motherhood. Find her here on Mondays.