Work, Interrupted

Two months. That's how long it's been since I've posted on here. I'm not happy or proud of that. Two months since life--work, health, me--went haywire and got in the way of, well, life.

My near breaking point came two weeks ago, on the eve of my family's vacation to Disney. The night before we left I sat up until all hours of the night trying to finish up all the work I hadn't gotten to or that should be done while I was away. Two weeks. What was I thinking? But whether I liked it or not, within hours we were headed to Disney. Trust me, I was feeling way more Grumpy than Happy.

The anxiety continued as the miles passed between home and our destination. I can't believe I forgot to do that. Did I send that e-mail? In fact, the first night when we stopped, I rejoiced at the free Internet access our hotel offered. When my youngest daughter woke up at 4 a.m., I volunteered to walk her in the lobby--where the computer sat. But then as I sat there alone in the lobby--aside from the desk clerk--checking my e-mail and bouncing my baby girl on my lap in the wee hours of the a.m., I suddenly stopped. What was I doing?

Down the hall slept three kids who had been waiting for this trip for months and here I was wondering if I scheduled a meeting.

The next day we arrived at Disney and to both my sheer horror and my delight discovered that there was no Wi-Fi. I would be completely unplugged for two weeks. Darn those sneaky Disney folks and their backhanded ploy for making me focus on and enjoy my vacation.

But guess what? Their ploy worked, and it was the best thing that's happened to me in months. My family and I played games, took naps and swam, all in addition to visiting the parks. My kids and husband had my undivided attention, something I'm embarrassed to say they haven't had in far too long. I also did things that I haven't done in far too long, such as laughing until I almost wet my pants, which I highly recommend--the hysterical laughing part, not the wetting your pants part.

I also think it was no coincidence that while we were there I was reading "Life is a Verb" by Patti Digh. I'm a huge fan of her blog 37 days, which I highly recommend. Her message is one we all could stand to hear.

For two weeks, I stepped off the treadmill that my life had become and just stopped. God, I needed that. It's amazing how quickly you can regain your focus when you just slow down, unplug and reconnect with what really matters. Try it.

Tomorrow I start back to work after my brief hiatus (yes, on the other side of my vacation two weeks now seems too brief). I'm pretty certain it's going to be overwhelming. The number of e-mails I had facing me when I got home was enough to freak me out. But it's O.K. I'm rested, ready and recharged.