Reflections of a Great Vacation

As I sit here in the Coffee Bean reflecting back on my trip, I realize I’m taking away a lot more than just fond memories of time spent with old and new friends.    I have profound faith in the true goodness of people.    I have a renewed sense of what’s truly important in life.   And I’ve been given a strong reminder of what my true values are.

From the waiter that spent over 20 minutes looking through the bushes under the restaurant with a flashlight to find my friends camera on New Year’s Eve, to the owner of the hotel that personally drove us in his truck to the restaurant, to his daughter, who gave up a Friday night to so show some “gringos” around Valparaiso because she truly loves the city and is proud to show it off!   These are just genuinely good people, who enjoy life and want to make sure others do as well. 

Everywhere we went people were generally warm and friendly.  They always went out of their way to make sure we were having a good time.   I can’t tell you how many times, people apologized to us for not speaking English!    Apologizing to us?  Completely unnecessary!     I mean we are guests in their country.  

I’m sure there is greed, laziness and thievery everywhere, but in general the people in Peru and Chile seem to have found peace and balance.   Regardless of their economic situation, they seem happy and much less harried and stressed than most of the people I know.    They value their families and community and don’t seem so focused on just themselves.

A couple of my friends have already gone back to work and their first day back they were working until midnight, right back into the craziness and stress.   I really want to try and have a broader outlook on life, be more focused on others and the greater good.  Find a way to enjoy work without it becoming all consuming.   How long will it last?   How long will it take me to get completely wrapped up in work again?  How long before this vacation and my renewed outlook is just a distant memory?  A week?  A month?  Three days?  Only time will tell.

For now, I sit at the Coffee Bean with the hope that this is a new and fresh beginning.  That it is not just a fleeting vision that will only be renewed with my next vacation.