In the bunker

As a kid, my favorite place to hide was under the covers.  I’d take a flashlight and a book to bed.  I relished the solitude of my own little world.

 There are times now – as an adult – that I still need to hide.  But not from my parents.  Well, not just from my parents – from everyone!  From phone calls…friends…responsibilities…work.  I call it “going into the bunker.”

 I don’t go often.  But when I do go “in the bunker” it’s like taking a day-long vacation from my life.  And when I come out – back into the world – I’m refreshed.  I’m more eager to participate in just about anything. 

I find that after taking time to just be with myself, it’s easier to be with others.  To do FOR them.  To give them whatever they need.

I’m lucky.  I can “go in the bunker” practically any time I want.  It’s easy for me to check out of my real life for a day because I live alone, don’t have kids, and am generally a responsible sort of person.

I know that not everyone has that luxury.  But I think we all find our own ways to “drop out of life” when we need to.  My girlfriend hits a local spa. My athletic friends go for a run.  My sister leaves the kids with her husband and goes shopping; she doesn’t’ buy anything she just “shops.”  It’s really all the same thing.  A time when we can be alone with our thoughts — uninterrupted – or without any thoughts at all.  A time to decompress.

In the heat of battle, soldiers dive into bunkers to protect themselves from incoming enemy fire.  I contend that us civilians need bunkers of our own.