Even on Vacation - Take Time to Stop and Smell the Roses

Do you ever find yourself completely exhausted at the end of your vacation?  Do you get home and realize you never took a break to rest while you were away?  Do you get so caught up in trying to see everything, and do everything you could in that short bit of time, that you never stopped to take a breath?  Well, even on a dive vacation, I suggest you don’t dive the entire time.  You need to shed that gear and enjoy your surface interval.  And for you avid photographers, both above and below the water, you must pull the camera away from your eye once in a while and soak in your surroundings beyond the viewfinder.  As the saying goes, “take time to stop and smell the roses”.

Then one day I chose to leave my camera on the boat...

After getting my first underwater camera I couldn’t dive without it.  Every time I went into the water, it was attached to my gear.  I was afraid that I might miss out on an opportunity to capture that magic image; that one perfect moment; that one rarely-seen critter.  I was constantly seeing the underwater world through my lens only, and missing out on the whole big picture.  But then one day I chose to leave my camera on the boat and just dive.  Wow, it was almost a relief.  I found my air consumption slowed and my sphere of vision grew.  The dive was almost more relaxing.

Now I’m not saying that when I dive without my camera I don’t miss out on opportunities for great images.  There have been those times where I’ve had amazing experiences that I wished I had captured with my camera, but that’s ok.  It is a constant joke amongst my dive buddies, that if it wasn’t captured on camera, then we didn’t really see it, but I realize when those times happen what I actually take away from that dive is the full experience.  How that wonderful animal interacts with those around him and how it is an important part of that whole environment.  I may not have a picture to take home with me, but I have a great fish story to share with my dive buddies, and that’s great too.

So how do we balance experience and relaxation?

We all know vacations are a wonderful thing.  They are our opportunity to discover a world outside our everyday life.  They are a chance to learn new things and experience all sorts of stuff.  And vacations are supposed to be a breather from our hectic schedules.  So how do we balance experience and relaxation?  I think it is a matter of remembering “everything in moderation”.  For me, I find it necessary to just find a few moments some time in my day to just stop and decompress.  Did you go out for your morning dives and come back to the resort for a delicious lunch?  After lunch, head over to that lovely hammock just beckoning to you and give your body some time to digest its food while you kick it and grab a few winks or enjoy a good book.  Or how about taking advantage of your resort’s spa services?  I love a relaxing evening massage before I retire to my room.  It really unwinds my muscles after an exhilarating day of diving and helps me to have a deeper sleep.  Maybe it is a romantic stroll on the beach while enjoying a warm tropical sunset with your loved one.  And how about on that last day of vacation, when all your gear is getting a chance to dry before packing?  You might find some time to sit around your laptop with your group of dive buddies and share your photos, fish stories and a lot of laughs.

Don’t forget the relaxation part.

So remember, your vacation is your chance to get away and relax.  Don’t forget the relaxation part.  Reality will be waiting for you when you get home.  Always take time to stop and smell the roses.  Make sure it is a deep, relaxing breath before you move on.

Do you have any favorite relaxation tips you’d like to share?  Something that helps you overcome the possible stress of getting to that fabulous resort?  Or maybe something to help you unwind while heading back to reality?  I’d love to hear from you.  I can always use some great words of wisdom.

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