The Perpetual Tourist

My parents both retired when I was in high school, and ever since they dropped their 70+ hour work weeks for lives of leisure, they’ve been busier than ever. Lots of retired folks will agree that life tends to get even more hectic when you don’t have to go to the office each day. After all, you’ve spent the last few decades putting your own priorities on the back burner, and with retirement, it’s time to catch up on all you’ve brushed aside.

I couldn’t be more proud of how my mom and dad have spent their time in retirement. They are an inspiration for making a difference, and for this post. They’ve traded in their suits and briefcases for denim and toolboxes, and are out in the community almost every day doing volunteer work. My dad has thrown himself into Habitat For Humanity, and I could argue that working with this charity has done as much good for him as he has done for others with his hours of building homes for the less fortunate.

In addition to volunteering a few days a week in the local community, working with Habitat gives you lots of travel opportunities. When Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf coast in 2005, my dad took off on a bus to Mississippi with tents and tools, and worked side by side with the residents who were trying to clean up and rebuild. Since then, he’s traveled several times to Mississippi and Louisiana, as the rebuilding process continues.

It’s not the type of vacation you take to see the world and relax, but you will get a different kind of enjoyment from helping others and seeing first hand how your own efforts are making a difference. It is a chance to bond with your fellow volunteers and feel good about yourself in ways that tanning on the beach will never accomplish — and hey, you’ll be outdoors a lot; you’ll probably still come home with a tan.

Volunteering trips are also great ways to travel when you don’t have friends or family who can travel with you, since you’ll be with a group of people who share your charitable interests.

If you are a student looking for things to do over Spring Break, ask around your school about volunteering trips, often called Alternative Spring Break. My college always offered Habitat for Humanity spring break trips to Florida to rebuild in hurricane-damaged areas there. You don’t have to put up much (if any) money of your own, and you get to spend a week with your peers — and it’s not all hard work. It’s more work than most of your friends will be doing on their precious week off, but at the end of the day, you’re still in a new place with a group of your peers, which is the essential formula for a good time, right?

If you’re a regular Habitat volunteer like my dad, you’ll get to see a lot of the country. Sometimes you’ll be in Nowheretown, USA, but when you’re with a good group of people doing the type of work you enjoy, the location doesn’t matter. And it’s a funny thing — hurricanes tend to strike worst in sunny, warm, coastal areas. Your charity tour of the country is bound to include some great vacation spots, which you can enjoy in the times when you’re not busy building houses.