Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind. – Seneca
What does that mean?
For me, it’s the Vacation Mantra! If you get a chance to get out of town, don’t you feel better? Do you feel refreshed, reinvigorated, and ready to get back to it when you return? Does remembering a recent vacation or trip get you feeling a little bit refreshed? That’s what it does for me.
The vigor of the mind also applies when you see spectacular things while away. Whether it’s art, architecture, mountains’ majesty, forests of unfamiliar trees (oak, aspen, pine, maple, or…) or other wondrous sights, it is refreshing, wondrous and mind expanding. At least it has been for me.
Why is being refreshed important?
There is an old saying about a woodsman taking time to sharpen his axe before going to work. You are only as good as your tools, and for most of us, our mind is a fairly useful tool. Without refreshing it, or “impart new vigor” per the translation, your mind, like the axe, becomes dull.
Besides the problems general of being dull, a dull tool will not do the work it was intended to do with the same speed, accuracy and effort as a sharp tool. Having a dull mind can lead to many problems besides not thinking as sharply or as quickly as you might otherwise be able to accomplish. It might also slow you down, or cause you to overlook things that would otherwise be obvious, leading to real problems.
Refreshing you mind is a way to help clear the cobwebs and set aside the distractions of daily life. It can be a ‘vacation of the mind’ for a few seconds, or a full blown trip to a tropical paradise (unless that’s your locale, in which case perhaps a mountain retreat is more for you).
Where can I apply this in my life?
How many of you have ever felt “brain dead,” having difficulty thinking clearly, or feeling thick, wooden or just plain ‘out of it’? I’m not talking being on mind altering substances, just seriously tired, fatigued, sick or otherwise distracted. Even something as simple as “spring fever” or “senior-itis” (High School, not really REALLY old) can qualify.
For me, true vacations to fantastic destinations aren’t in the budget. So I take brief “sharpen the axe” vacations in my mind when I’m feeling a bit sluggish. I remember some of the past blow-out vacations, like Maui for our honeymoon, or two weeks in the UK for our 15th anniversary. Just five minutes of recollection can really blow out the cobwebs and impart new vigor to the mind, to quote some old guy.
I presume if you have had a fun vacation that you can remember the more interesting portions without much prompting from me. But what if you haven’t been able to save up for even one blow-out vacation yet?
That’s where movies, documentaries on TV or even TV shows come in. Why do you think most TV shows are set in exciting cities (Fargo being an exception)? Las Vegas, New York City, Chicago, and Hawaii are just some of the sites. You can use them to imagine you are there.
Pirate movies tend to visit rustic looking parts of the Caribbean. Space movies can be set anywhere and any-when, so that can be an interesting bit of fuel for the imagination. Romance movies can be set almost anywhere and any-when (especially if it’s fantasy based), and historically based movies can have even more flavor.
Documentaries can be of places literally anywhere in the world, so that too can be used to help with the short mental vacations. I’ve been impressed with some of the wildlife documentaries on Africa that I have seen over the decades, and it’s on my bucket list (to go there and see the animals). I have also seen documentaries on Everest, Deep Sea Creatures, jungles full of bugs and swamps full of toothy creatures. Not going to go there, but it is interesting to watch.
How about you, what are your favorite locations? Have you taken a few short mental vacations just reading these ideas? I hope so, that’s the whole point. Another possibility is to keep an eye out for themed parties. Can’t get to Rio for Carnival? There are parties each year, from mild to wild, and one might be near you. Can’t get to the beach? Each spring hundreds of places have their own spring break with a couple of truckloads of sand in the parking lot and deck chairs, and will be happy to provide you with a tropical drink (for a nominal fee). Yeah, it’s not the same but it costs a lot less, and sometimes it’s the best my budget can handle.
Take some time this week and refresh yourself. Perhaps next weekend you can take part of a day and watch a favorite movie or two and let yourself be transported to someplace else. Change your place, even if you never leave the couch. Refresh and relax. Then be ready to hit life hard when you ‘get back’ from your travels.
From: Twitter, @thezenmama
confirmed at : http://matadornetwork.com/bnt/50-most-inspiring-travel-quotes-of-all-time/ – It is number 40 on the list.
