Staycation

Who says you have to go on vacation? With a tough economy, busy schedules, and hot weather, it isn't always the best option for friends and family to travel.

Right now there is a hot trend called "staycation." It means you stay at home, visit your city, go to the pool, play board games - whatever floats your boat. It also means that you take some time to be grateful for the many things you have, probably within reaching distance. Your own wonderful bed, for instance. Homemade ice cream, or a scoop at Baskin Robbins. Lazy sleep in mornings and pancakes. Playing in the yard. Or, get creative. Turn your home into a "home-tel" and enjoy a family spa holiday at home (see the Family Fun article below). My friend Sue even runs her own blog at http://fieldtripswithsue.blogspot.com/, sharing economical and free family ideas in Atlanta! Whatever you can dream up, you can do, probably on a dime!

A few years ago, Elizabeth Gilbert's book Eat, Pray, Love was the prime focus of book club chatter. Readers were often envious of Gilbert's year in three other countries, following her personal spiritual road map of growth and healing. Several times I taught a course on this book, and one of the big comments was, "Yeah, that is easy for Elizabeth Gilbert to do - she had a book advance and no other family responsibilities at the time. Wish I could do that!" So, we started to explore ways to travel without going anywhere. How in the world do you create spiritual journey experiences without leaving home and family? Can it be done?

I believe it can. Travel is an amazing and powerful gift that we may not always see as a spiritual discipline. It can be hectic and tiring. But with a spin of our thinking, we may be able to transform the gift into an exercise in gratitude and devotion. It may depend on the trip and the travelers, but it also depends on the thoughts.

One suggestion I might have for you this summer is to create some spiritual focus, some spiritual travel - even if you go nowhere. Here is a simple way to try it out. Have you thought of walking the Bible? I am about to laugh even typing that - I realize how many people would just stop reading at this point. But hear me out - I was lucky enough to catch this opportunity a few years ago, and I can't recommend it enough. Walking the Bible takes you along with Bruce Feiler's journey of faith and travel in the Holy Lands. Check this out - http://www.pbs.org/walkingthebible/ - and also check out the dvd, available on Netflix and through Amazon - and also the photographic journey version of the book. I learned so many things that honestly I never knew, or had taken for granted, and I felt the Bible come to life. I have never had the opportunity to visit the Holy Lands, but through this documentary I was able to "go there" anyway. It didn't cost me a dime, but it was a life changing experience all the same.

And… we also don't need to be told that it is the little things that often create the best memories. (Have you seen the film "UP" yet?!) Focusing on these little things, here in the middle of Ordinary Time, can open a wealth of love and pleasure if only we give it our attention.

Happy summer. Enjoy. Amen.

In Wisdom,
Brandi Calhoun Diamond

For more information on staycations, please visit:
http://familyfun.go.com/family-travel/road-trips/feature/ff0209-winter-s...
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/06/12/balance.staycation/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23580960/