Feb 2025 –
This year I spent the celebration of the day I was born enjoying some beautiful sunsets cruising the Atlantic ocean, meeting new people and generally enjoying the love of my life…. ME!!!
For those who may be empty nesters or living life solo… Are you living or existing? I am choosing to live life daily on this journey. I am not afraid of being alone because guess what… I am never alone. I enjoy the silence, time to reflect to truly know who I am. If you would like to get out and meet new folks with similar interests I would suggest meetup.com. I have met some of the most interesting people going to see movies, a musical, or playing and learning new boardgames. The freedom of this journey is to be free to take advantage of those gifts the universe drops at your feet. I heard Oprah refer to them as “God winks”. In order to see these gifts you have to slow down and be still in order to notice what is going on.
You may ask how was I able to cruise for “free”? Well it did cost me a couple hundred, only because I chose to upgrade. I was gifted this from a cousin who wasn’t able to go and she thought of me and I said yes. I didn’t have to think about it or even talk myself into it. Although I am not able to work from the ship I am able to take time off more often than not to just disconnect when I want since I don’t use my PTO (Paid Time Off) for my nomadic journeys in the US.
I was recently asked the question “When do you take a vacation?” It was then that I really came to appreciate this nomadic journey. If you think of the word vacation the root is vacate. To vacate in short means “to leave” or to go away from. Does this sound like an enjoyable practice to you? Instead of thinking of taking that “vacation” to leave your worries behind, do as I do. I choose to do this daily. After a days work as I am hopping from location to location every few weeks I take time out to vacate the room or location I have been working in for the past few hours to enjoy something beautiful and new in the location I am in. For this trip it was an extended time of watching the most beautiful sunsets, listening to the ocean waves, trying chef prepared delicacies and enjoying just being.
Did you know you there is a cruise port in Jacksonville, Florida? I chose to leave from there since I was staying in St. Johns and would travel to Jacksonville for various activities with groups that I met on meetup.com. If you are in the vicinity think of taking some time away for an extended weekend I would suggest checking out Carnival cruises leaving from that port. I was able to find things to do and they had an adults only section (Serenity deck) that provided an escape from the hustle and bustle family activity. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against families but at this stage in my life I’ve come to appreciate time alone.
Just remember take a little time everyday to disconnect and reflect, even if it is a couple of minutes. I promise you that little by little you won’t be in search for that perfect getaway or vacation, you will find peace, tranquility and beauty right where you are. Here is an album to share a few of the experiences of my time disconnecting.
Until next time remember, there is so much to see and so much beauty in our very own back yards.
Leave a Reply