The "Get out of Dodge" button

- This post was somewhat inspired by this post. I promise Kelsey isn't paying me to advertise her blog. -

Somewhere in Kansas...

When I was a kid, my parents made sure that I knew ANYTIME I was at a friends' house and felt unsafe, I could call them and they would come get me. No matter what time. No matter where I was.

In recent years, I've started to imagine this concept as the "get out of Dodge" button. Why? Who knows... I think its a good life boundary though. If you start to feel unsafe or start getting that sixth sense about something, there is almost always a way out. A reset. People will help you.

When I lived in Spain, I experienced life very strongly. There were times I giggled with glee just to be walking down the street and see palm trees. And I had my first anxiety attack. I always knew though, that if things got to be too much for me to handle, I could press the "Get out of Dodge" button and come home. Right then and there.

Another time, I wanted to press the button, to call home and ask for help. It was the closest I've ever been to being kidnapped and living the movie Taken. (Hm. Wanna hear that story? It has a happy ending, obviously...) But I was in France. There was no "Get out of Dodge" button. There were no people, just me and the man I was trying to avoid. It was one in the morning. I was at a Metro stop in Paris with no directions to my hotel and no taxis. And no phone. It worked out.

Today, I pressed a sort of "Get out of Dodge" button in one area of my life. I was immediately relieved. And excited. And filled with anticipation...