The joy of going nowhere

You wake up to a whole new world. Sparrows chirp, crows caw. The early sun spreads its gold graciously on the building terraces. The trees stand luxuriantly green and fresh. You snuggle into your bedclothes. No demands, chores or schedules…Ah! This is a staycation.

People across the world are staycationing. Not just people who can’t afford holidaying in the hills, but people who are tired of all the hassles of travel. We work so we can have a home. Ergo, come vacations, it makes perfect sense to stay in your nest, resting your wings.

It’s profoundly healing too. When you have nowhere to go and things don’t crowd your mind, you discover life’s secret spaciousness and its hidden orchestra of silent joy. When you don’t operate from adrenaline, you bypass the hustle and noise and find fresh time and energy bubbling up. It’s empowering not to have to get somewhere. It’s delightful to be yourself, live at your natural pace, not have to prove anything to anybody. It’s true leisure – your mind and heart being stretched like a cat in this ultimate luxury.

Sadly, we’ve become so hypnotised with the idea that a vacation to some faraway spot is a must (a virtual social dogma) that we cannot differentiate deep-felt wellbeing from superficial pleasures. Only by opening the mind to new possibilities and different concepts can we begin to understand the deep delight of having to go nowhere.

So, what do you do on a staycation? Take a collective decision – no stressing, no demands, conflicts, anger or sulking. Decide only to bond. At the same time, give one another space. The best way to pay for a staycation is to enjoy its serene hospitality. It’s beautiful to sleep and wake up in your own bed. Have no agenda. Fix simple meals. Order in occasionally. Try a fruit plate. Enjoy sitting quietly, doing nothing. Play games. See the film you always wanted to see, read the book you always wanted to read. Be a little kinder to one another. Vibrate in harmony. Laugh.

“People travel to faraway places to watch in fascination the kind of people they ignore at home,” said philosopher Dagobert D Runes. Darn right! Delight in everybody’s eccentricities. Watch the sun rise and set. Fall in love with your neighbourhood.

A merchant said to the Master, “I’ve simplified my lifestyle, but I still haven’t found peace.” The Master responded, “But, have you simplified yourself?” Most of us don’t live the way we want to, but the way we think we should. Try living in a non-pretentious way, not in a way that befits your ‘status’. Turn your status off and your heart on.

Somewhere, you have to stop dancing to society’s dogmas and start whistling your own tune. Skip, hop and dance to it. Once you settle into your rhythm, it is the most liberating thing in the world. A wise tip: don’t think in split terms – vacation or staycation. Be dependent on neither for your happiness. Be happiness. Then you can carry that quality wherever you go, wherever you are.

Think vacation and staycation. Then you become the meeting point, the centre of harmony and happiness. Opposites are designed so that you can be a meeting point. It empowers. Thus, say, even when you are ill, you can carry a feeling of wellbeing and harmony around with you. And when you are well, you know the vulnerability of being ill and be sensitive and compassionate. Ah yes, a staycation can take you everywhere. It all depends on your inner vistas.