The getaway luxury

It’s been a week since my BFF (best friend forever) left U.S. soil to vacation in Asia.  You can’t imagine how green I am with envy!  She’s been there for days and never once mentioned feeling difficulty with jetlag.  You see, where the airplane picked her up to fly her to that country, there’s daylight.  Where she is now is night-time.  Later next month, when she comes back and returns to work, the time difference will take its toll.  In the meantime, she and her family are living it up and enjoying every moment. 

In a few years when employment would have been a fond memory of my life, I hope to embark on an exotic journey.  Sure, I can do it while I’m still a member of the work force, but taking time off has always been a challenge for me.  Many years ago when I was able to take two-week vacations from the office, it meant STRESS in every sense of the word, before departure and after coming back.  You see, I was responsible for training my two-week replacement so that it would be business as usual even while I was gone.  The stress factor was probably inconsequential because as it always turned out, the people who pitched in for me always did a marvelous job.

However, that time was the glorious years in my corner of Corporate America.  Employees were encouraged to take a breather so that they could return recharged and ready for the challenges of the workplace.  I don’t know about other folks, but where I work now, it gets harder to get away.  I can’t complain really because I had a two-year “vacation” (forced time off due to layoff) not too long ago.  That unwanted period was enough to make me not think of another long vacation.

For others who have the good fortune of scheduling a break from their jobs, congratulations!  I hope that you spend that time in a place where you can renew your energy and optimism for the salaried tasks in your future.  Count yourself lucky that you can afford the luxury of escaping the cemented jungle which seems to get brutally demanding as time goes by.  Feel blessed that besides the opportunity to savor some vacation time, you can look forward to coming back to the job that allowed you to get away.  Wouldn’t it be unfortunate if, after spending time in some exotic location, you return to work to find someone else sitting at your desk?  Just kidding!

I’ve known some people who make it a point to go to sunny shores in wintertime.  My former boss in Australia has always loved going to foreign places with his family.  To celebrate his 80th birthday next month, he is now enjoying a cruise to South America and Antarctica.  Well, he’s retired now and can stay away for as long as he wants. 

For the rest of the corporate slaves who can only recharge their batteries on the weekends, worry not!  Our consolation is in knowing that although a long vacation remains a figment of our imagination, we are enjoying gainful employment.  Whether you know it or not, that’s something that many, many people in this universe don’t have bragging rights to at this time.  The thought alone should give us an ample amount of solace and gratitude.