Vacation's End

Today my vacation comes to an end.  I am having one of those vacations where I wish I never had to leave--what a gift!  We've all been healthy and in good moods, with a good mix of together time and do-your-own-thing time.

If the vacation wasn't ending today, we'd have more time to explore Marco Island.  I still haven't gotten to the beaches that are great for birding.  It would be cool to see Little Women with my mom or to go to the new Star Wars movie with the whole family.  There are restaurants we never visited.  If we stayed here longer, we might get tired of cooking and clean up and venture out more.  Or maybe we'd just do more of the same stuff that's brought us joy this week.

Of course, I don't want the vacation to come to an end for other reasons.  We go home to a flood-damaged cottage and a car swamped by flood waters that won't start.  I have no idea where we go from here, as we haven't had a chance to assess the damage or talk to my sister-in-law.  I haven't let myself really think about the situation, in terms of making a plan and a back-up plan, with three variations just in case we need them.  Once that would have been my approach.  This year, I didn't want to ruin my vacation.

And then there's the old damage to repair.  Just before we left, my spouse's laptop died--AGAIN.  Can it be fixed?  Is it worth fixing?  The IT guy comes on Monday to find out.

There's also the prep I need to do for my online classes.  One class has changed completely, so I need to work my way through the content--in an ideal world.  At the very least, I need to plug in dates and change all the parts of the course shell that need changing every term.

Of course, one of the reasons that I don't want to go home is that this place is neat and clean, with a balcony that has a magnificent view.  Home just isn't the same, even in the best circumstances.  These days, it feels like we'll never have the house reassembled again.

Let me remember that these problems can be solved.  Unlike some years, we're not facing health issues.  We still have most of our loved ones with us.

And let me look forward:  I am starting the certificate program in spiritual direction.  There's much to look forward to.  Let me not plunge into despair.