I like to run. Perhaps you can also say I’m a “runaway”. A runaway in my field can be defined as a means of escape; in other words, you can say that the motivation of running away is due to escape. (As I’m “distanced” from my work, I’m going to be referring to some work jargon 🙂 ) haha.
While this new chapter of my life begins, I recognize that I’ve been running away often. Running away from responsibility, relationships and even myself.
Running away from responsibility.
We all have a responsibility to play in our own lives. We have the ability to help set our own schedules, choose who we hang out and not hang out with, and ultimately how we carry ourselves. I get it, we all have different beliefs, values, and morals, respectable. Thankfully what we do have in common is the fact that we are human. There’s a song that says, “We all bleed the same, we’re all beautiful when we come together. We all bleed the same, so tell me why, tell me why we are divided.” – Thank you Mandisa for writing such a “reality-check-in-your-face” song!
Listen to it here: Bleed The Same – Mandisa
If we get cut, we bleed – we’re wounded. We care for the wound and eventually it heals. Sometimes scars are left behind, sometimes the wound and would-have-been scar disappears. It all depends on how you care for it. Did you use a decent cream? Did you wash your hands before disinfecting? How often did you change the band-aid? Were you using No-name brands or the top-of-the-line stuff? Regardless of what you did, you did what you could and your results depends on how much you have put in to taking responsibility of your cut. Done deal.
Running away from relationships.
In previous posts, you’ve read about what it means to be and have real friends. I’m a strong believer in the fact that God places people in and out of your life for seasons at a time. For the almost-30 years I’ve been alive, I’m forever grateful to and for my friends who have come in and out of my life through the years. For those that helped me feel accepted in high school, to my college mentors and project group peeps, and my long-time friends to my new friends – you all play a part in my life!
Will we lose friends? Absolutely. Will they come back? Only God knows. We all have relationships to take care of and I believe the ones that matter the most, are those that reciprocate your needs. I know for myself, that I need encouragement every now and then; oftentimes I catch myself being “that encouraging friend” and don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect it in return. But, there does come a time when I get tired of reaching out and need people to reach out to me. Do you have or are you a friend like that? Whatever the case is, I hope you are learning how to “run” away from relationships that do not help you grow as a person. Why would you place a rotten apple in a basket of fresh ones? ‘Nuff said.
Running away from myself.
So I did a thing the other day. I looked in the mirror and smiled for 5 seconds. If you’ve got a mirror nearby go to it and do the same. No mirror? Open the camera on your phone. Got none of the above? Just use something to see your reflection 🙂 When I was in university, I remember attending a Mental Health Conference organized by my friends (forever grateful for that by the way!). One of the speakers suggested to do the mentioned activity to boost my mood! Don’t believe me?
Read more: Smile Strong
I tell my friends to do this when they’re feeling down. So DIY! On a serious note, looking at myself in the mirror can either make or break me. Depending on my mood, how the day’s been, and what’s currently happening in my life. Running away from myself means keeping busy, avoiding responsibility and ghosting my close friends – elopement, or acting out of the desire to escape. This is where self-care comes in. Some things I like to do when it’s time to unplug from everything that keeps me occupied: go for a walk, listen to a podcast, read for 20-30 minutes, or colour with my favourite music playing in the background. This helps me take my mind off of the stressors in my life and just focus on what’s happening right in front of me. I’m a work-in-progress and since I have a difficulty doing this, I’ve started intentionally scheduling time do have “me time” for at LEAST 20-30 minutes a day. I’ll share more about these “self-care” in a later post 🙂 Keep on keepin’ on.
Well Beauts, there you have it, some “runaway” situations that I personally need to work on. Are you a runaway? Do you find yourself running away from things that you should be facing head on? Comment below and let me know 🙂 Let’s encourage our Beauts to keep each other accountable and stop running away.
-LifeisaBeaut ❤
L I F E I S A B E A U T 