On Running Away...

We all want to run away at some point in our lives.  The first time I remember actually running away I was quite little.  I don’t remember if it was actually me running away or if I was following Sister, because she was running away.  I just remember, for lack of a better word, a ramshackle bag packed, snow on the ground, and getting far enough from the house to be able to hide but still see if anyone was following me/us.  No one did, and I or we got cold and eventually went home.  I would love to hear other peoples “I ran away” stories.   I would imagine some of us have some good ones.

I have this problem with relationships as well.  Kind of.  I hate fighting.  So instead of fighting I walk away…if I stay and fight it’s really not a good thing at all.  I guess I have been accused of “running away” from problems because of that, but if that were really true, I would not still be in Illinois 10 years after returning back here again.  I walk away from a fight; I don’t think that's running away from life.

Now, as adults when we want to run away, it’s usually from our responsibilities at home, work or school.  I have a lot of places I love to go to get away.  I read.  I crawl in bed, turn all the lights off and nap, take my chair to the river (which is probably my most recent favorite.)  When I was in Minnesota, I would drive up to the cabin.  I have only done this twice, but when I really wanted to get away, I would go stay at a Stony Creek Inn, in one of the whirlpool/fireplace rooms.  Yes, totally alone.  But I would take a bottle of wine, turn my phone off, crank up the air, sit and soak in a hot bubbly tub and then curl up by the fireplace with a book and disappear.  If I could afford it, I would do it once a month.  It may only be in East Peoria, but I felt a million miles away from whatever crap I wanted away from.  Probably the most relaxed I have ever been.

I think it is incredibly important that we “run away” from time to time, to keep us charged up.  We aren’t supposed to run on an endless supply of energy, we weren’t made that way.  There are hundreds of things a day that take that energy from us.  Some of us more than others.  But for me it is kind of like changing the oil in my car.  I know it needs done and my car needs it, but it’s a pain in the ass to do.  And I have a hard time “treating” myself.  I do believe that we are better people towards our loved ones when we do take some time to regroup, refresh, rejuvenate…

So I posed the question, where would you run away to, and an awful lot of people said the mountains.  A couple said Hawaii…I am guessing if more people had been there, that would be their answer too.  Disney World?  Ok…I am pretty sure that is the last place I would go to relax, but I am glad that it makes others happy…it is supposed to be the happiest place on earth!

I didn’t pose the question on my own however.  I posed it because my friend Kelli suggested it.  I know a lot of people, but I don’t know very many people who probably deserve to run away more than Kelli.  Unfortunately, she wouldn’t be gone long because she loves her kids too much! 

I had known of Kelli, via her husband, who as she confirmed, is “her biggest kid.”  I had never spent time or gotten to know Kelli until she and her husband asked me if I would be willing to host a benefit for a very good friend of theirs battling breast cancer.  I was flattered and honored, and who doesn’t like to celebrate boobs!  Kelli worked with many others as well as a mutual friend, Natalie to basically coordinate the event and pull it together.  I don’t think I have met another person and selfless as Kelli.  And I don’t use that word sparingly.  Kelli and Jeremy both went above and beyond not just for me, but also for Michaela.  You know how you can tell when people are doing something so they can get recognized versus people who do things just because they have a really big heart and do so because other people’s happiness is put before their own?  Yeah, that’s Kelli.  Not only did she promote my business and allow me to have an incredibly successful night, but she introduced me to some people, especially Michaela, who I am still friends with to this day.  I don’t see them or hang out with them, or talk to them all the time, but I am pretty sure they knew we bonded that night, in a way that you just cannot simply forget.  I will forever be grateful to her for not only helping me and my business, but for coming into my life and bringing genuinely good people with her.

I cannot put in my own words how Kelli answered this question that she asked me to pose, so I will just copy and paste it so you can see for yourselves: (and she will probably hate me for it, but she will get over it.)

I am just a mom! That’s what I am... I have 3 kids, a husband who thinks he is still a kid, I have daycare kids every week day from 7:15am to 5:30pm, I have all my kids friends here from the time school lets out until it’s time for bed! Need help with homework they come to me, need a Band-Aid for a scratch they know I have one, the house better be full of food, including homemade cookies or I am in trouble! 

Today we ran away to the park... last week we ran away to the jungle, AKA a walk around town, we sometimes run away under a table covered with a blanket which is our campout, if it’s with just my kids we run away to the farm to work with show animals, or to the pond to fish! I could never really run away without my kids! They are my life... all of them and there are a lot!

She went on to say that she was “just helping a friend” with the benefit, but it was more than that.  I hope she realizes that.  She was…helping a friend.  And she was helping people make new friends…and she was practically helping a complete stranger’s business…

If you haven’t learned by now, if you give me an idea about a blog, I am going to call you out in it!  I give credit where credit is due…and Kelli deserves a lot.  More than she would ever allow herself to receive I am sure.

The part that I absolutely love the most about her “running away” is that she is teaching children where to go, to just “get away.”  Not run away from their homes and never come back.  She is teaching them how to take things they may take for granted (the park, the pond, the barn) and use it as something positive.

You are pretty great Kelli!  Thanks for sharing your answer, as well as posing the question!!!