Timeout! Working Hard, Hardly Working

I usually work hard - a lot of hours over 6 days per week. More recently over the past year I have juggled multiple work-related contexts and I have put in even more hours.
       I learned something incredibly valuable in 1998 when I "hit a wall" because I worked too hard for too long. The lesson was that when I work I work hard and with great intensity. And periodically I need to STOP right in my tracks and NOT work for two or three weeks.
       Today begins that STOPPING for me. Susy and I head to Ireland for 5 days for a much-anticipated 25-year wedding celebration for our friends Marcus and Wendy. It will be several days of fun, relaxation, and laughter with a group of wonderfully life-giving friends.
       We come back to Denver on August 1st and then spend a few days camping with our kids on the Arkansas River about an hour south of Denver.
       And then Susy and I drive to the Los Angeles area (stopping along the way to see sites at the Colorado Monument and elsewhere) to have 10 days of R&R.
       For all of you in Europe, you will not think it too strange or odd that I am taking a three-week break. It's part of the European culture that we enjoyed and appreciated for many years there. For all of you Americans, you probably have raised eyebrows and perhaps  a questioning looking on your face as you read this. You may be wondering how we can "get away with" taking off for three whole weeks.
       I suppose it is one of the perks of: working for a ministry that accepts me taking the time off, running my own company, and working seasonally (umpiring baseball is now done). So, let the fun begin!