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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: Escape (01/02/06)
Softly, I closed my book, afraid to disturb the silence that had crept into the house. I was alone. Tear welled up in my eyes. Its what I always wanted-to be alone.

The words of a friend came back to me.
"You're a new mother. You need to escape once in awhile. You need to be alone sometimes,” she had admonished.

It was then I started planning my “escapes.” I would go anywhere just to seek peace and quiet for awhile.

It didn't help. My life just got noisier. The demands of my job, my growing children and my marriage never ceased.
I struggled to escape the daily explosion of noise around me. By then, everywhere I went I heard that you had to take care of yourself first before taking care of anyone else. “Me Time” became the coined phrase repeated everywhere. I not only agreed, I embraced it!

I thought the stillness of sleep would be enough to quiet my soul. But it didn't. Sleep was impossible with all the noise resounding in my head.
So, my days just got longer. I would call home explaining that I had to work late or meet a needy friend and to not wait up. “I need some peace and quiet” became my mantra. I would say those words to anyone who came near. Yet, I couldn’t escape the echoes of need resounding in my head.

Then one day, my own words came back to me.
“I’m leaving,” he said. My husband looked down at his hands as he explained. “You need to be alone. I need to be alone.”

The memory was still so fresh. I wiped my tears and walked to the window. Snow had started falling and the wind whispered as if joining me in the silence.

I remembered not long after my husband spoke those words; I went up to the attic to pack up my things. The attic would often be my welcome escape when I had nowhere else to go. But that night, it was the coldness, darkest place I knew.

As I was packing, I came across my old scrapbook. Its cover was torn and cracked with neglect. I remember thinking that if anyone could see my heart right then, this is what it would look like.
As I held my old scrapbook, flutters of papers fell to the floor. One small withered card caught my eye. It had the handwriting of a small child on it, dated when she was only 8 eight years old. It was a card she had clutched in her hand when she left Sunday school one morning—filled with laughter and making all kinds of noise I am sure.
I turned the card over, and read the faded words.

“Be Still and Know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 NIV

As I read those words, I felt a peace deep down in my soul. I closed my eyes and I heard the voice of the preacher as if he were in the room with me.
“He is waiting for you and loves you. Come, give your heart to Him”

It was so real, I was afraid to breath. I kept my eyes closed and saw this little girl get out of her seat, and walk down the aisle. She was shaking inside, yet filled with so much hope as she knelt down and gave her heart to Jesus.

How could I forget?

As I sat trembling in that cold and dark place, I realized that Jesus never forgot. All those times I had pushed everyone away in my life and had searched in vain for an escape from all the noise- He had been there all along- loving me and waiting for me.

The snow was still falling silently as I turned from the window and looked at the clock. Almost time. Soon they would all be here. My family, friends and my husband. Soon, this house would be filled with laughter, joy and so much noise—I could barely wait!

I had spent hours in the attic that night, yet I had never felt alone. The place of my fruitless escapes was the place where God met me and gave me the peace I craved. He reminded me of His love. He restored my marriage. Now, when I need to be alone-I run to Him to quiet the noise in my life. I am never alone. And that is exactly the way I want it.
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Amy Michelle Wiley 
01/09/06
I got a little confused at the end, where the husband left and then suddenly he wsa coming back, but this was good! Such a great reminder. Our society puts so much emphasis on "time for me", when really we need to concentrate on God and our families.
terri tiffany
01/10/06
I think this was very nice. I felt her pain. One note, I think you meant breathe instead of breath..I only caught it cause I did it once:) And I think you also want It's.. in the beginning there. But overall...very good!:)
Shannon Redmon
01/12/06
I liked the picture you painted in my mind of her life when you compared it to the tattered scrapbook and how the memory of your little girl brought you to Jesus. Touching story!
Maxx .
01/15/06
Love the emotion. Great torment to capture. Excellent regrets, etc. And the resolution was right on.

But I'm going to pick just a little... using a line as an example: "So, my days just got longer." You tell us that the days just got longer. Why not show us through an action instead? It makes things so much more alive. Tell me an event that symbolized the days getting longer. Follow this rule and the writing will leap right off the screen.

Again, excellent scene and great conclusion.
Beth Muehlhausen
01/15/06
Deep canyons here; you expressed your heart well. Would like more explanation of the redemption of the marriage, but in general, I was so happy to know that heart-healing had occurred!! :-)