What's your philosophy?

Elementary Girl had a couple of teeth pulled this morning. Three kids, and three dental surgeries in the past two months. I'm thinking of getting a second job...kidding.

Seriously, though, I watched in awe as the dental assistant prepped EG for her minor surgery. She gave her some laughing gas, and adjusted a flat screen to eye level so she could watch The Parent Trap as the doctor pulled her teeth. How cool is that? We could've had them knock her out, but then she'd have to deal with all the lovely aftermath of that. This escapism thing was much better, in my opinion

Lately, I've been working with a publisher on a non-fiction project. I mentioned this months ago, and some of you kindly responded to my survey for SAHMs. The project continues to morph, and at this writing, I'm re-working it in various ways, including writing it with all busy mothers in mind.

But in the process, the issue of escapism has come up, and we're not talkin' teeth here.

We all have our ways of dealing with hard things, and even just the daily tough stuff. Is it escapism when we run off to the beach to heal? Or distract ourselves with Disney movies during dental surgery? Or is that just learning to deal with life's tough stuff in ways we humans know how?

I admit, I've want to escape at times. Often in raising kids mothers get to a point of no return, a place where they're so worn and frazzled that they need to refill somehow. I'm not blaming this on the kids (at least not at the moment, haha). There's just a lot to do--a lot I want to do--and sometimes I just run out of steam. Know what I mean?

As a Christian, I know the power of the words God left for us. Often, I pull out my Bible (I love The Message version), and I don't need to read long before feeling a Supernatural strength holding me up.

Other times, though, I still have to get out of my disorderly house, or I'll go crazy. I'm enormously thankful to live near the beach, where I can go to pray without someone asking 'what's for dinner'--others prefer the mountains or a park or a river, and hopefully, they can find access to one. Many, many other people do not have the luxury of 'escape', their lives too oppressive, cluttered, demanding.

So is this escapism? Or reaching for solace in times of need? Maybe it's what we reach for that's important. Hm... I'm still working through some things, so tell me what you think...