Real Life Isn’t Lived on a Cruise Ship

A few weeks ago, Laura and I had an opportunity to take our first cruise—a four-day, four-night excursion to the Bahamas. We waited 32 years before “getting on board” with the cruise-vacation fanatics, because, well, we’ve heard too many stories that kept us shore-bound.

But after 32 years of marriage, we thought, Why not? Let’s take the plunge (no pun intended). Needless to say, our expectations were far surpassed with an amazing experience of rest and relaxation artfully combined with a bit of adventure and activity. I mean, who wouldn’t want to have four days where all your meals are provided, someone cleans your room, and the biggest decision you have to make is where do you want to sit by the pool?

But here’s the problem. Real life isn’t lived on a cruise ship. While cruising along the east coast of Florida, I did find out that there are people who actually do live on cruise ships, but that’s another story. 99% of all “cruisers” eventually have to disembark the ship and get back to real life. 

I, however, did not want to. Not that I’m trying to avoid anything in the real world; I simply found myself really liking (I mean, really liking) the amenities to life on a cruise ship. I even did a little research for my future retirement involving a cruise-ship chaplaincy ministry. Someone needs to care for the spiritual and emotional needs of the 1,200-plus crew members aboard the ship, so why not me?

And yet, Friday morning came, and at 7:30 am, Laura and I had to get off the ship and get back to real life. I may be sounding like they had to drag us off the ship, which wasn’t the case, but let’s just say Laura and I look forward to a possible re-embarking in the not-so-distant future.

So, what did I learn? Well, let me share a couple of takeaways from having to get off the big ship and get back to real life. 

1.        Learn to live in the moment with purpose and joy from a deeper center than the nucleus accumbens, the “pleasure center of the brain.” In other words, don’t live life in the doldrums of reality as you always seek the next dopamine hit from future vacations. Cruises, like all vacations, should not be an escape but a respite. We rest in order to re-enter life with purpose and joy. Enjoy today. Develop healthy rhythms in “real life,” so that special occasions support ordinary life rather than detract from the “specialness” found in the “ordinariness” of the day-to-day.

2.        Prioritize relationships over experiences. I’ve seen the Louvre (by myself), visited the Eiffel Tower (by myself), traveled all across Spain (by myself), explored Vienna (by myself), and I assure you that those grand experiences would have been exceedingly grander had I not been … by myself. Relationships are built in the real world, not on vacations. And relationships are what we step back into when we get off the cruise ship. Count it a blessing and don’t take it for granted that the real pleasures in life flow out of Christ in us the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27) and those we have closest to us in the ordinariness of life. That’s what “cruising” through life is all about.

“These are my fellow workers…and they have been a comfort to me”

(Colossians 4:11, ESV).