This last weekend we got home from Spring Break 2024. For the past several years, we have made a tradition of "Getting out of Dodge" for our kids' break from school. Previous destinations have been St. Simon's Island in Georgia, Huntsville, Alabama, and Columbus, Ohio. This year we returned to Georgia with a trip to Savannah and then up to Charleston, South Carolina. Our original plan was to rent a house as a base of operations, but we decided to take our camper instead. Getting away from the routine was a needed break. But, as one who has been working on discipline and routine this year, not much of the trip could be considered DEF Reset compliant.
Savannah was our first destination. This town came highly recommended from several of our friends who had previously visited. Originally founded in 1733 by James Oglethorpe, Savannah has played a pivotal role in the history of Georgia. It was designed as a series of neighborhoods around 22 squares or parks - each with their own unique features and attractions.
While in Savannah, we took a trolley tour to get an overview of the city, its key sights, and history. Later, we went back to visit the riverwalk, iconic Forsyth park, the Georgia Railway Museum, and sample some local food at The Pirate House and Leopold's Ice Cream with a spontaneous curbside, bodyweight workout session with the kids while waiting. We also took a trip out to Tybee Island to spend some time at the Georgia Beach.
The next leg of our journey brought us to Charleston, South Carolina. We budgeted less time there, but in retrospect wished we had spent more of our trip in Charleston. This town was founded in 1670 and is South Carolina's port city. Its history is storied as the location of an English colonial charter, a pirate port city, an important southern city in the American Revolutionary War, and as the site where the first shot of the Civil War was fired.
On our one full day in Charleston, we began by visiting the South Carolina Aquarium. Situated right on the water, this was a fun opportunity to experience not just the standard aquarium fauna but also species native to Piedmont region. Next, we took a step back in time to visit historic Fort Sumter, the location that marked the beginning of the Civil War. It was fascinating to stand in a place that held such historical significance and see artillery shells fired in that conflict still imbedded in the brick walls of the fort. Our day concluded with a walk down rainbow row and through waterfront park as we enjoyed the quaint, historical charm that characterizes Charleston.
While we did a great deal of fun things on our trip, we also experienced many significant challenges. Several years ago, one of my friends commented to me that when you have kids you cease to take vacations and now take trips. When kids are involved, the change of scenery and change of routine adds work for the parents. Whatever amount of work is required to plan, execute, and pay for a trip; multiply that by the number of kids you have then multiply that by the kid difficulty cofactor (which is basically the average of your kids' age subtracted from a really large number). Add to this feeding kids lots of ice cream, skipping naps, making them stay up later than normal and throwing off the routine, you can imagine that behavior was not in any way exemplary or anywhere approximating the manners purported by Emily Post.
In addition to managing kids, pulling a 29' trailer with a 22-year-old truck 700 miles through the mountains amplifies the stress, headaches, and work. Generally, each trip also involves some degree of mechanical work on either the truck or the trailer. Last year’s repairs included a replacement of the high-pressure power steering line, engine temperature sensor, and starter. This year I tried to get out of head of things, replacing the trailer tires, changing the engine oil, replacing the fuel filter, and more. But despite my best efforts in preparation, our trip was complicated by not one but three mechanical problems.
First, we discovered that we had no power in the trailer on our first night. Since the trailer was plugged into shore power at home, I had forgotten to check the battery. A quick stop at Walmart and we were able to solve that problem. Next, I noticed some dry rot and the beginning of a bleb on the sidewall of one of our tires that was worse than before as we pulled into Charleston. Fortunately, a nearby Discount Tire had four new tires and an open time slot.
The piece de resistance occurred on the way home as we were traveling through West Virginia at night. Fifteen minutes from our planned stop, I noticed a funny appearance in my rear-facing, truck camera and a large amount of smoke behind me. Realizing that this was coming from me, I pulled over to find the front of my trailer and the undercarriage of my truck painted with an oily substance. Walking to the front of the truck, I saw a red liquid coming from underneath the engine that made the truck appear like it was bleeding. A brief exam uncovered the source of the hemorrhage as a filter housing for the transmission return line from the radiator. Fortunately, I was able to pretty easily repair the problem and thanks to the help of the West Virginia highway roadside assistance team, I was able to be refilled with automatic transmission fluid.
When we finally got home, travel weary and tired, the work only continued. The trailer needed to be unloaded, washed, gray and black tanks dumped, and returned to its typical parking spot. A week’s worth of travel, created a mountain of laundry and pile dishes that need to be cleaned and returned to the camper.
While there were a lot of fun things that we did on our trip, the trip itself created a lot of headaches and hard work, which in the moment raised question, “Is this all worth it?” But to appropriately answer this question, we need to step back for a little perspective and remember a few things.
First, medicine is hard work. It’s demanding work. It’s probably a fair statement to say that, for the physician and family, it takes more than it gives. This is especially true in academic medicine where the projects are never done and there are always more things to do.
Second, family is the number one most important thing after faith. In a previous post, I wrote about how we have 18 summers to spend with our children before they leave the house, likely for good. This means I have a very short amount of time to teach them, build relationships, and to create memories. So, if not now, then, when?
Third, in light of the first and in service of the second, several years ago we purchased our truck and trailer as a way of being very intentional about making time for our family. Part of my thought process was that intentionally spending money in this capacity would serve as a reminder to be intentional about prioritizing time spent with family as well as being the means by which to spend time together.
In our trailer, we have put a sketchbook for our older boys (littles will ge theirs in time) for when we are on our camping trips. Is the place for them to use their creativity to express what is on their minds. On this trip, one of my sons drew me this picture of me and our camper. It is a unique window into his mind, and the memories that he is making. S o, as we answer the question, “Is it worth it?” You tell me.
Links:
Savannah
Charleston
Campgrounds
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