The Almost Vacation

      Jeannie and I went away for a couple of days and almost had a good time. I had to travel for business and we thought we could make a mini-vacation out of it. It turns out we almost did. There were a lot of other things that almost happened:
- we almost had a nice dinner together and a quiet, romantic evening. We ate at Cheeseburger Bobbies and drove around looking at the outside of houses instead.
- we almost had a relaxing time sitting by the pool and swimming. The business part of the trip had filled our minds to the point where relaxation was elusive.
- we almost stayed in a really nice, elegant downtown Atlanta hotel, but those were not included in the business travel options so we stayed at a nice enough Comfort Inn in Buford.
- we almost found a wonderful coffee shop, but the coffee tasted like it was brewed in a dirty gym sock, whereas Starbucks was one exit up the road.
- we almost had a cup of delicious Starbucks coffee, but we let the barista's lack of courtesy drive us away empty handed.
- we almost made out in the hotel elevator, but I carelessly squished Jeannie's arm and that was that.
- we almost went to the lake, but my meetings lasted well into the evening.
- we almost took a nap in the middle of the afternoon, but we had driving to do.
- we almost intimidated a truck driver who cut us off, but the horn in the Honda Civic just doesn't have that capability, sounding about as intimidating as a little girl's bicycle bell.
- we almost had a good glass of tea, but we settled for Sonic instead of waiting for Chik-fil-a.
       In contrast, we spent some wonderful time with our son and daughter-in-law. Although the events were not planned, we tried to ensure the intention of the time with the kids was fulfilled. The evening included a walk to Falls Park, dinner at Mellow Mushroom, ice-cream, and a stroll through beautiful downtown Greenville. There was no business to conduct or houses to look at, only time enjoying each other.
       The difference between the "almost" days and the evening in Greenville? Intention. We did not intentionally and purposefully plan our time together. We had conflicting goals that kept us from moving past "almost" to "there". Unfortunately, we do this all too frequently. We try to combine all of our little plans into one master plan. We are being more efficient, but we sacrifice effectiveness.  We think we can do everything at once, when the reality is that we almost do most of it. Instead, we need to be intentional and purposeful, and then carefully guard those purposes to keep distractions at bay.