Why Vacation Makes Me Tired and How to Change That

Does Vacation Make You Tired?

As I stuffed the last item in my Prius, I shook my head in wonder. My simple drive to Alaska had morphed into a road trip with a relative and a building project for our daughter. The pile of tools Pedro deemed necessary for the shed-building endeavor took up half the space in my car. “I won’t have room for hitchhikers,” I muttered under my breath. (I should mention that I don’t pick up hitchhikers, but I always feel Grinchy driving by when I have ample room in my car).

Tell me I’m not alone—I can’t decide if vacation makes me more tired or less tired. Assure me that I don’t struggle alone to relax during vacation. Hours of planning and packing go into a vacation—especially when it involves multiple weeks, six states, and two countries.

My ideal vacation involves long hours to think, write, hike, photograph beauty, and maybe chat with family and friends. I would go to bed early and wake up a little later than usual. But that hasn’t happened yet on this vacation.

In order to nourish both my introvert and my extrovert sides, I get up early and walk to a coffee shop where no one knows me for some alone time. I trade the peace I crave for noise of people I don’t know. Instead of going to bed early, I stay up a little later than usual so I can hang out with people I love.

A Different Kind of Tired

The temptation to compare my ideal vacation (which sounds rather selfish) with my reality nibbles at my soul. The words of God to his people through the prophet Jeremiah convict me that my vacation has played out exactly as it should thus far.

I’ll refresh tired bodies; I’ll restore tired souls.—Jeremiah 31:25

We’ve spent hours with Sarah. Yesterday we toured the school where she’ll teach next year. The charming campus lies in the middle of wheat fields surrounded by rolling hills. We met some of her coworkers, the principal, and the superintendent. When she tells me about her students and her job next year, I’ll easily imagine everything because I know what it looks like.

We unloaded all of Sarah’s stuff into a storage unit for the summer. Our house no longer has any of our children’s belongings stored away in crooks and crannies. God has blessed us, indeed. Sarah will march across the stage on Sunday and receive her diploma while family and friends will cheer her on.

Although vacation thus far hasn’t met my lofty ideal, it has done something better. It has restored the tired of my soul. My family will spend time together. I’ll have the chance to reconnect with my brother and sisters (I don’t see them very often). Everyone will get to meet our grandson.

I’ll probably feel physically and emotionally tired by the time Monday morning rolls around. But I wouldn’t exchange it for anything. God uses people, conversations, and shared moments to restore and refresh us in ways we didn’t know we needed.

When I let go of my agenda and ideal, I make room for God to restore and refresh. What have you discovered about how God restores you?