Summer officially begins in a few weeks, although schools in many parts of the country have already closed their doors as the days grow longer and the temperatures rise.
Do you and your family have big plans?
Maybe you have visions of camping trips, sandy beaches and long naps dancing through your mind. You’ve got a list of activities all mapped out with dates and locations carefully selected. Other people prefer to keep summer loose and their schedules open. The fewer things set in stone, the better.
Regardless of your traditions or temperament, I hope you’ll set aside some time in the coming months to unplug and spend it with your family. It surprised me recently to find out that Americans leave as many as 175 million available vacation days unused in the typical year.
I can certainly understand the stresses that might prompt workers to eschew time off and vacations — inflation is rising, everything costs more, the economy feels fragile and overworked employees feel they can’t take time away.
Originally published by the Washington Times. | 
