Amanda Decides to Run Away
One day my
oldest child Amanda and I had a disagreement. I can’t remember what it was
about, but it really upset her. She stormed around the house for several
minutes before stomping up the steps to her bedroom. I heard drawers slamming
and I went after her to investigate what was going on.
I arrived
outside of her door just in time to hear another drawer slam shut and I decided to
stop her from damaging the furniture.
“What’s
going on in there? Why are you slamming the drawers?” I demanded.
After a few seconds, she yelled back. “I’m
leaving. I’m running away!”
“What?” I
said pushing her door open.
Across the
bottom of her bed was an open suitcase. One of the drawers of her dresser was
hanging open. She was taking clothing from that drawer and tossing them into
her suitcase, piling them onto the clothes she had already put in it.
That upset
me, "Running away?"
The great
thing about the situation was that it had started to storm outside; with rain, lightning, wind and
thunder. Even the weather was on my side for this plan. I thought, “If she wants
to run away, why don’t I help her? In this weather, she won’t get far.”
So I pulled
open another drawer and grabbed handfuls of her clothes and tossed them on top
of the things that she had decided to take. I took another handful of clothing and added
it to the pile. “If you want to leave, I can help you.” I offered.
Just then a flash of
lightning lit the darkening skies and a roll of thunder shook the windows. It was done as if on cue. She
looked out the window, then at me. She apparently had changed her mind and started to grab the things from her
suitcase and put them back into the drawers.
I took
another handful of her clothes and threw them into her open suitcase. “You wanted to leave.
I’m just helping you.”
“No Dad!
No!” she pleaded and kept putting her clothing back into the drawers. I kept forcing the
issue by pulling out clothing until she said, “I’m sorry Dad. I don’t want to run
away. Stop!”
I stood
there for a few seconds and then said, “All right. Put your clothing away and
get ready for bed. It’s getting dark outside.”
She had no
more complaints and there no more plans to run away from her or her brother or
sister.
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