That title sums up my experiences of the last several weeks.  It went a little like this:

I took some time off the grid.  It was my vacation before my vacation!  I have a feeling that this will become a part of my regular routine.  Refreshing is the best way I can describe that time.  I did not go off grid to get away from the negative talk on social media (though that was an added blessing).  I unplugged so I could be present, engaged . . .  in my life and with the lives of those I am with.  That focus helped me disengage from some negative thinking, allow the past to be the past and prepare myself to move forward.

It also set me up for the time it would be necessary to be off grid due to travel.  In God’s great mercy and grace He provided time for us to get away that was paid for prior to being out of work (and income).

We boarded the Grandeur of the Seas for a 9-night cruise to ports in Charleston SC, Port Canaveral FL (where we enjoyed reconnecting with three friends we haven’t seen in years),

Freeport Grand Bahamas Island, Nassau Bahamas and Coco Cay Bahamas.  Unlike many on the ship, we do not cruise for the excursions (trips one takes after getting of the ship at a given port).  Some look interesting but they typically are quite expensive and not very accessible.  We cruise because it is an amazing vacation for a couple who deals with disability in marriage.  Our hotel travels with us, we don’t have to schlepp luggage, the adaptive equipment is delivered to our room . . . what more could we ask for?  We get to simply relax, sleep in, read, listen to some good music, enjoy the pool and the ocean view.

Our first morning I opened our balcony doors and looked out and said, “this is what I love – to look for miles and see ‘nothing’.”

Then I turned back to our room and said, “until I turn this way, then I see ‘everything’.”

Doing and seeing “nothing” but being with the one who means “everything” to me is a pretty awesome vacation if you ask me.