Mike and I had a night away last night thanks to our village who kept our boys. We don’t do it often, but are always reminded of why it’s important. When we were younger, I don’t think either of us realized the power of twenty-four hours.
We’ve both been burning the candle at both ends balancing work, coaching (Mike) and home and I had been sick all week, even into the morning of our date day. Neither one of us was about to let an opportunity for hours of solitude slip by, however.
While a night at a boutique bed and breakfast felt like a splurge, it was worth every penny and every quiet moment. French-themed, the room was tastefully decorated with noteworthy touches, but not overdone. I appreciated how orderly it was – that alone felt like a break from our usual chaos of toys, throw pillows and blankets all competing for the same floor space in most rooms on our main floor.
I was smitten with the pristine white towels and robes, plush pillows, and a snuggly bed that screamed “please, come take a nap!”. As I made my way around the room, I was particularly struck by a message on the coasters that adorned a cute little bistro table by the windows. “Life is Beautiful” they said in simple gold script.
It gave me pause. I snapped a photo as a reminder. How ironic that we were there to escape our life for a moment, but were then reminded of how beautiful life is. Maybe escape isn’t the right word. Recharge. We were there to recharge.
At one point – I think while we were eating take-out and watching the Olympics (we really know how to live it up!) Mike turned to me and said “it is so nice to have a moment to just take a deep breath with you.”
I sat with that for a minute. That’s what it felt like. An opportunity to pause, take some deep breaths and regroup…together. To be reminded of who we are as a team, that we’re stronger together, and how grateful we are to be on this twisty turny journey together.
Twenty-four hours isn’t a lot of time for some, but for us, it’s a total reset and we work hard to fit in our favorites – pedicures, delicious food, good coffee, maybe a little wine, and the permission to do absolutely nothing. And let’s be honest, nothing recharges you more than a three-hour nap followed by 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep.
We enjoyed a lazy morning, delicious breakfast and the ability to have some really important dialogue that life is often too busy for. For the first time in a long time, we had a collective feeling of being at peace with the ability to be present in the moment. The usual lists, demands and appointments that pull us in a million directions were silenced for a while. It was a gift, really.
Our kids never skip a beat in helping us with re-entry. Bless their hearts :). We’re always reminded of why we missed them and sometimes of why we miss our time away. And never do we realize just how loud and over-stimulating our life is more than in the first half hour of returning from a getaway. But upon our return, we’re able to look at each other with a collective knowing, an understanding of how feeling recharged makes our chaos easier to shoulder, more patience, more bandwidth, more capacity overall.
Life is hard. It’s messy, chaotic, overwhelming, filled with joy, sometimes sorrow, lots of love, lots of hugs, sometimes tears, laughter as far as the eye can see, twists, turns, highs and lows. But as we were reminded by the saying on the coasters in our room, no matter how it looks, life is also beautiful. And sometimes even a twenty-four hour break makes it easier to see.