Beyond The Horizon- The Beauty Of The “Staycation”

Beyond the horizon, in my mind I am headed to Horizons park. The name has echoed through my head enough the past 72 hours. Beyond the horizon I can see it. One of my favorite places to visit growing up. My family of 10 would fill up dad’s old white station wagon and leave our home in east Winston-Salem and take the short drive over to the sleepy town of Germanton, NC. My parents knew how to fill up the cooler the right way, with chips, sweet snacks, and Capri Suns!

This was the 1980’s, so pulling up to the park we would always see teenagers with big George Michael styled haircuts playing frisbee in the big field bordering the park’s entrance. Young kids playing horseshoes and volleyball dressed in styles that varied from that of the music group New Edition to pop artist Rick Astley. These were great times. My parents would find the perfect picnic table, fire up the grill and start the barbeque. I can remember having my first childhood kiss here. I was 6 years old and it ironically happened at a church picnic; pure innocence, pure bliss.

As the warm summer breeze would rustle the trees, I remember as a kid looking around at the beauty of nature. The true essence of this feeling is captured in the classic song Summer Breeze by Seals and Croft. Even back then, the feelings of euphoria and nostalgia would engulf my very being. My brothers and sisters playing games. My mother asking me to sample delicious food fresh off of the grill. We literally would spend the whole day at the park, heading home at dusk. As the day would come to a close, It was a feeling best described by the lyrics of the song “Golden Time Of Day” by Frankie Beverly and Maze. During the ride home us kids generally would be passed out in the station wagon. When we arrived home after what always seemed like a long ride, my parents would carry me into the house, and I wouldn’t even realize that I was asleep until I woke up the next morning.

Summer Breeze https://g.co/kgs/gnWx6Q

Golden Time of Day https://g.co/kgs/u6xHtL

Growing up, I never realized the profound impact these events would have on my life. My parents didn’t have much so the occasional day trip or ‘Staycation’ meant so much to us kids! Coming from a large, lower income family, we could not afford family vacations growing up however these day trips provided something priceless in my book, great memories. Fast forward 25-30 years and it’s amazing how I try to capture these same feelings with my own family. With more resources and access, I find it ironic that at times it can be more difficult to capture the time capsules of memories like I used to as a kid. Still, we have moments in our family now where I see a resemblance to the days of old and I love it!

The morals of the story are, never underestimate the power of a good staycation. Life is not always about taking large-scale trips around the globe. Money can’t buy happiness. The beauty of the outdoors is irreplaceable. Most importantly, life is worth living. I don’t know what you may be going through right now but I know life can be difficult. Could it be that a short ‘staycation’ is exactly what you need? I challenge you to give it a shot and report back in the comment section of this article how things went. Signing off for now,

V.R.