Can we have eternal holidays
July 2015
By Jamuna Rangachari
Holidays are a time when we relax and enjoy life. For some people, this takes place often and for others, not so frequently. Whatever may be the case, we need not wait to go for a holiday to bring in the holiday spirit in our lives. With simple steps, we can introduce the same spirit into our lives wherever we are.
When a friend asked me recently, what my favorite holiday destination is, I did not know what to say. I told her there are many and hence, I really do not know which one of them was a ‘favourite’. In fact, there are times when just a break to a nearby destination with friends has been much more of a great holiday that a fancy trip that we have taken.
As far as destinations go, Goa used to a favorite destination as it had something for people of all ages in the family at that time. A wonderful beach, all sorts of cuisine and a relaxed, laid back style of the people of Goa itself.
We also enjoyed our trip to Kerala for the boating trips, visits to temples and museums and for the amazing greenery.
When in Delhi, we had taken trips to Agra, Jaipur and Dehradun, all of which were quite enjoyable in their own ways, both for the ambience and the people we went with the ones we encountered.
This then made me start thinking on what we enjoyed in the holidays. This made me make a plan of having this spirit all the year that then defines our life itself.
Planning to have fun
All of us used to enjoy planning the trip. We use to buy clothes, games for the train and pack all of them. During planning, there would be a lot of excitement as to where to go to buy what, keep individual bags as well as a suitcase and so on.
Looking forward to something fun and getting caught up in preparing for it was where good feelings begin. Expecting good things put us in a happy, excited mood.
It was quite easy for positive emotions to build and grow. That’s one reason why the holiday spirit is so contagious. When one person is happy, it can lift the spirits of others. They in turn pass this happiness on, and it all keeps going like a game of happy tag. It’s no surprise that people say they wish the holiday mood could continue all year.
Now, why indeed can’t it continue?
Being in a spectacularly great mood doesn’t mean there has to be a spectacular event to look forward to. In fact, it’s often the simple things that are the most meaningful and create the most joy for people.
So what mood do you want to create this holiday? Is it one of joy and fun? Peace and love? Giving and sharing? Interacting with all sorts of people? Learning about all cultures and their traditions? All of this is indeed possible.
Before we do any of this, we should actually introspect and think about what it is that gives you most joy. Each of us is unique so we all may have different preferences. This is how life is and we could keep that in mind and then do the following :-
Food for enjoyment
In modern life, people are either too stressed or too conscious of their appearance and hence, food just for fun and enjoyment happens only during a holiday. This need not be the case. We can always include some food for joy as often as it is possible. This will indeed make us happier also. This happiness will also result in better digestion and therefore, better health too.
Interaction with people around you
In modern life, saying just ‘hi’ and ‘bye’ is the trend among neighbors and co-workers. Very often, we cease to even make an effort to know them as individuals, as people with their own likes and dislikes. In the process, we feel lonely even if we happen to live in a crowded colony.
A common trait that I found quite remarkable in Mumbai was people making friends whom they meet every day during the process of getting to work. They have a group of friends, share jokes, and even share sweetmeats while getting to work. This gives a spirit of a holiday even while they are truly working hard. In fact, this is one of the reasons that people who live in Mumbai always like to live there.
Visiting all the places around one’s town regularly
Many of us do not take trouble of visiting places in our own town or city. I know many people who have never visited any monument in their own city or but have indeed traveled all over the world. Why should this be the case? We can take regular holidays, every week if only we make our destinations easy to access.
Interacting with all kinds of people in the town
When we travel, we usually ask people about their culture, their festivities and even their way of life. Every town has different sets of people, with their own lifestyle choices. Wouldn’t it be fun if we also explored this in our regular life?
Organizing and attending interactions
For most people, it is the activities done with friends whom they went with and the ones they did interact with that are the most memorable. Why don’t we keep doing this in our city or colony also? There are so many experiences we can learn from if we attempt to do this. As in all areas, we only need to take the first step.
We can organize bhajans, satsangs, reading clubs or whatever it is that interests you with others. With this, we shall indeed make more friends and slowly we do get to know everyone as individuals and shall even perhaps have pot luck lunches or picnics.
In sum
It doesn’t matter which holiday we celebrate or whether we go to various places to have fun. Creating a positive mood for ourselves and others around us make good things happen as a result applies to any situation. So let us create our own celebration: preparing to feel joyful and fulfilled always. This will ensure we indeed have eternal holidays, every single day of our lives.