Vacation – That Magical Time to Recharge (Or So They Say)

Vacation. That time of year when we’re supposed to recharge, clear our minds, and let our souls breathe. Supposed to. In reality, many of us shift straight from vacation mode into achievement mode: cabin renovations, garden overhauls, “small” side projects — anything you can point to and proudly declare, “Well, at least I got something done!”

I don’t even have a summer cottage — and yet, as I lie there with the morning sun peeking through the trees, I already feel a twinge of guilt: I have no ambitious plan for the day. Am I failing at vacation? Why is it so hard to simply be?

Summer in Hämeenlinna

Why Is It so Hard to just be?

We Finns are a people of productivity. For generations, we’ve had it drilled into us that idleness is practically a mortal sin. I recently spoke with my 86-year-old mother about this. A post-war child raised in a rural home, she nodded knowingly:

“We were actually made to feel guilty if we weren’t sweeping or shoveling from sunrise to sunset — seven days a week.”

And yes, echoes of that sentiment ring through my own youth:

“You’re not just going to lie around all day, are you?”

During my student years, I juggled three part-time jobs — not only to pay for my academic adventures but to avoid being labeled lazy. Now, in my fifties as an entrepreneur, my days are filled at the studio, and my evenings are spent at home clicking away on the laptop — brainstorming social content, creating videos, tinkering with my website, planning, and promoting. Free time? Scheduled for "maybe next month."

Entrepreneurship, however, is my own choice, and I genuinely enjoy it. I’ve consciously followed this path where I get to express myself through handmade work, especially in the world of tufting. Every day is different, full of learning and new ideas — and although entrepreneurship demands a lot, I get to do what I love. It gives my daily life meaning and still sparks the same excitement that first led me down this path.

That said, everyday life can sometimes be exhausting, just like in any profession. That’s why it’s important to make space for recovery — to pause, take a breath, and simply be, without the pressure to constantly perform.

This Summer’s Challenge: Doing Nothing

This summer, I gave myself a challenge: Just be. Now, my dad’s hospital visits threw a bit of a wrench in the plan, but the goal remained — to take a few proper breaks without pressure to “accomplish” anything. And to some extent, I succeeded! But oh, how hard it was. Staying off social media felt like the first day of a sugar detox: hands creeping toward the phone, mind whispering, post something summery, just a little! Surely someone out there would love to know that I’ve been watching daisies sway in the soft summer breeze?

But then comes the pressure. Try telling someone you spent the whole day lying under the trees, staring at the sky — and they’ll say,

“Wouldn’t it be nice to visit a museum or explore some local history while you’re off?”Because even on vacation, doing nothing is practically scandalous.

The highlight of the summer was definitely camping, even it might have happened inside a barn.

We’re All on Different Tracks (and Some of Us Sleep Through the Journey)

I’ve always been a great sleeper. If I don’t get enough rest, I turn into a heart-palpitating zombie version of myself. Some people can power through on four hours of sleep, buzzing around like squirrels on espresso, while others — like us marmots (how much do marmots sleep, anyway?) — cheerfully crawl into bed at 8 PM and emerge only when the treetops are glittering in the morning light.

Of course, as a proud ambassador of the peri-menopausal club, I can tell you: even with 20 hours in bed, sleep still manages to feel like a myth — thanks to nighttime tossing, bathroom trips, and strange, inexplicable awakenings.

Maybe that’s why this summer’s mantra was: Just be. And I have to admit — I sort of pulled it off. Silence, slowness, stillness... they were surprisingly OK.

Naksu knows how to chill.

Back to the (Literal and Figurative) Grind

But now, vacation is fading, and the wheel of routine begins to turn. The work calendar fills itself as if by magic, and life slips back into its usual rhythm. Goodbye daisies. Hello, Teams meetings.

So let us rise from the swamp of stillness and throw ourselves once again onto the altar of productivity — but maybe this autumn, with a little extra kindness… and permission to just be, every now and then.

What about you?