Holidays!

I’m preparing for a week out of the office.  Which means I’m looking at what needs to be finished asap before I leave and what will be most urgent when I return.

Not that I plan to leave entirely… I might be out of cellphone reach while we’re driving down the Eglinton Valley en route to Milford Sound.  Or when we’re spiralling down under the earth at the Manapouri Power Station… or watching the dolphins cavorting on Doubtful Sound.  Jealous yet?  Just remember it’s the depths of winter – the only consolation is that the notorious Fiordland sandflies are not as bad when it rains and the waterfalls are fantastic!

Anyway, the point is, we’re always available these days.  And I’m not sure that we need to be!  I admit, I’m not good at turning off the phone.  But I am aware that my moments with the family are precious and that I need to be fully in the moments, living in the present and not spending too much time dwelling on what needs to be done.

Every now and then, I remind myself that nobody is going to die if I don’t finish what’s on my To Do list for the day!  It’s different for my friend Rosie who’s a doctor, but I’ve seen her in holiday mode and she knows when and where to switch off!

I’m going to take the work laptop – I still care about my clients after all and need to just check in every now and then.  Plus I have a major assignment to start working on – it’s due in a few weeks and I have some serious reading and thinking ahead.  But the plan is (yep, I have a plan) to set aside maybe an hour when the tween hits the hay and I’ve got a nice cup of tea… to deal with work!

And when I get back, I’m sure there’ll be a few things to attend to.  Can’t stand having nothing to do!

Mental note:  Remember to do nothing for at least part of my holiday (when I’m not swatting sandflies!)