A Working Vacation
This trip is what you would call a working vacation. My time is divided among family and work responsibilities. In that respect it is nothing like the family trips that I remember from my youth and for that I am sorry. My children are forced to share me during a time where I should be focused on them.
My siblings and I never faced any of these things on our vacations. Mom and dad were always there. There weren’t any waves or gestures for silence while dad finished talking to a client. But then again there weren’t laptops, cellphones or any of the other electronic leashes technology has afflicted us with.
That is sort of a negative perspective so let me provide the positive spin on it too. The electronic leashes as I have named them also provide freedom to get away from a desk and go elsewhere. Some of the projects that I am working on require attention that I couldn’t otherwise give and so I am grateful for this flexibility.
But it is sometimes hard for me not to compare myself to my parents. They are the best model I have for parenting for that is what I experienced first hand. They fought and struggled for us and I appreciate that. One area that I know is different in a positive sense is access. My kids tend to see me more than I saw my father. He left early in the morning and came home just a few short hours before dinner.
The home office lets me see the kids all the time. I sometimes drive or pick them up from school. I get to attend practices for their sporting events and do things that my dad couldn’t do, so I guess it sort of balances out.
Maybe the person who is most upset by a working vacation is me. Maybe I am the one who is a bit frustrated that I have to keep switching hats. Have to think about that one. Either way I am pleased to see how much fun the children are having as that makes me very happy.
Gratitude is something that I need to express more frequently.
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