The first vacation I can recall with Connie and our girls came as a result of a church member giving us a free pass to a timeshare cabin in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. This family had purchased a week’s lodging but was moving back to Alaska and gave the trip to us. At the time, our girls were very young, and we enjoyed a great time together. Like most young families, our finances were tight, and we would not have been able to afford a vacation without this gift.
Since that time, following the advice of an older and wiser pastor, Connie and I have saved money each month in order to take our family on a summer trip. We do not take luxury getaways, but instead look for a place where we can rent an Airbnb, enjoy hiking or other outdoor activity and a few meals out.
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Today my girls are married, but we still prioritize vacationing together. We just returned from a week away — again in Gatlinburg — and we had a great time.
Here are some things I have learned about family vacations:
1. The best experiences are often unexpected: One of our favorite vacation memories came from a mountain hike that moved from a moderate level to much more difficult the further we went up the trail. We found ourselves climbing over massive rocks at a high elevation with a light rain coming down and not certain that any of us would survive (no exaggeration). We did survive — obviously — and had a great story to tell on the other side. My family still gives me grief for leading them up this “moderate” trail.
2. The best meals are often at home: While my family enjoys eating out on vacation, we have discovered that meals in restaurants for six adults can be expensive. The meals we enjoyed most on our recent trip were prepared in the house we rented. Each family took turns cooking breakfast and one night we grilled burgers and hot dogs. We had a great time around the table laughing, eating and telling stories.
3. The best outcome is time together: The older I get the more I sense that life is short and the opportunity to be together in an unrushed environment is a precious gift from God. I am watching my father-in-law as he ages. He is 85 years old and cherishes time with his family and blessing the people in his life. A family vacation can be an annual opportunity to just be together with the people you love. Not everyone has that opportunity, but those of us who do must try and take advantage of it any way we can.
4. The best expectation is to enjoy one another: On a recent podcast I heard an older man advising a young father on how to manage expectations for their family vacation. Parents often work so hard to save money and take their children on the “perfect” vacation that they place an unreasonable burden on their children to be appreciative for all that the parents have sacrificed. The older man shared that children are not thinking about the parents’ sacrifice, but, instead, remember that their dad, who is normally very busy and preoccupied, was available to have fun and do things they wanted to do. My girls used the term “Vacation Dad” to describe the difference in my attitude on vacation versus the rest of the time. Vacation Dad is much more relaxed and more fun to be around.
May the Lord allow all of us in ministry leadership to enjoy time with our families. If a family vacation is an option for you this year, my hope is that you and your family can enjoy that time as well.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Todd Gray and originally published by Kentucky Today.
