How to bring vacation vibes to your everyday life

We spent the last week of the kids’ summer break at Folly Beach. We live close enough to Folly that we can visit any time, but life gets busy and I don’t go out there as often as I’d like.

Now, weeks later, as the season shifts and the air smells like Friday night football and pumpkin spice lattes, I still think about that week at the beach.

Each morning, I walked the beach at sunrise. Some mornings the sky was silver; other mornings rose gold. The sand, ocean, and clouds blurred together.

During these early morning walks, I noted how many people were already on the beach. Some surfed, but many others strolled the shoreline, looking down, scanning for shells as the waves rolled in and out. I’d see people, young and old, sitting on the sea walls, sharing conversation, reading, painting. The sound of ocean waves and birds flying overhead were the threads that tied the scene together.

Even though the beach was more active than my photos reveal, these beachgoers weren’t bringing a jump start your day! kind of energy. It was more meditative, peaceful.

Space. Margin. Room to breathe. That's the thing that vacation offers that isn’t as accessible in our non-vacation life. In everyday life, we have to be more intentional about creating that space, or we might not get it.

That’s why even at home, I wake up early—before the sun. But I won't suggest that you wake up earlier than you already do, if that won’t work for you. When and where and how we create space doesn't matter, just as long as we do.

A walk around the block. A chapter of a book. Eating lunch on a park bench. A short morning prayer or meditation. Turning off the radio while driving just to hear yourself think.

Sure, none of these things are exactly the same as walking on the beach at sunrise. Except that I've had many breakthroughs while walking down my own street. I've worked through many personal challenges by lighting a candle, sitting on my sofa, and savoring my morning coffee.

These little things can get us through the day, through a tough transition, and to our next vacation. The little things can help us create a life that we don’t want to escape.