Getting Away – Finding What’s Important: Daytona Beach

Vacation has a way of clearing out the muck swirling in your brain to filter your thoughts. Doesn’t matter where I go . . . getting away is all that matters.

Recently my family traveled to Daytona Beach Florida and spent the days on the beach without a plan or itinerary (difficult task for my brain). The air warmed to eighty degrees without the assistance of a fireplace, and the parking lots were not covered with ice and snow! We basked on the beach with tunes blaring, and the girls jumped the waves on their boogie boards.

We walked the beach and studied the jellyfish that had washed ashore. We attempted a GREAT JELLYFISH RESCUE … we are going to assume he is alive and well in the Atlantic as we speak.

We found a Marine Center that rescued sea turtles that had been found injured on local beaches. We toured the animal hospital and were fortunate to be present when three sea turtles were released back into the wild the next day! Turtles previously covered with barnacles, filled with plastic, or simply too cold were rehabilitated and now swam off into the ocean without looking back.

We marveled at hundreds of motorcycle riders in town for Bike Week wearing skull masks and covered head to toe in leather. The spirit of the road blasted with the roar of their pipes.

The only activity we planned (okay, I lied – I scheduled one thing) was a kayak ride down a Florida river in hopes of seeing a manatee. We floated on a gorgeous sunny day down tributaries under moss-covered trees with cormorants and Great Blue Herons flying overhead.

We saw a manatee flip and poke its nose out of the water as it rolled in the water. We saw alligators and turtles sunning along the shoreline. When the deep guttural grunt of a large gator bellowed from the nearby marsh, my daughter exhibited superhuman paddling abilities to speed our tandem kayak far away.

The entire week of vacation, I slept in, read two books, and walked more than I have in weeks. By getting out of the organized and responsible space of my brain, I reconnected with what’s most important – the world around me. The ocean waves, sunrise, and my family filled me with contentment and the much-needed pause to regroup.

My head is clear and my spirit rejuvenated. Back to work, and also to plan my next vacation . . .

Thanks for reading Pat’s Chat!

Please sign up on my email list on my website to receive automatic emails when a Pat’s Chat is released!

Need an Easter Gift? Saving the World and Return to Grymballia are available on Amazon! Give the gift of books.