Your someplace

Holly: Lately Kelly and I have been on a bit of a Numb3rs binge.  If you're not sure what that means, you can read more about it here.  Anyway, we watched an episode earlier today, "The Running Man", and one of the side stories is that Charlie and Don discover their late mother was a closeted, and gifted, musical composer.  Their father feels some resentment because he felt as if he was kept in the dark about this.  At the end of the episode, Charlie and Alan (their father) are having a conversation about this discovery; Alan still feels as if she was hiding something, Charlie believes she wasn't.  Charlie states that people go to their own places to be alone, and he puts it this way:

It's just part of being human, you know?  To want to find someplace solely for yourself, whether it be out in the world or deep inside your head.  

Got me thinking about alone time.  As many of you know I am a very happy and exuberant person by nature.  I love to laugh and I do it often.  Most of all, I love people.  However, after taking several personality tests over the past year or so, and just based on my own experiences in that time as well, I have discovered that I do lean towards being an introvert.  Like I said earlier, I love people, but after being around people for an extended period of time, I need time by myself to unwind and detox.  No, that doesn't mean I'm shy.  Quite the opposite, actually.  In fact, I was surprised by these findings because when I was in college, I was waaaayyyyy more of an extrovert (Probably because I didn't have any time to be alone in!).  Back to alone time:  I think Charlie is dead on.  I greatly look forward to my alone time, even though, given my current schedule, my alone time comes in bursts throughout the day: walking to work each morning with my iPod on and a cup of coffee in tow, at home; writing a blog, in my room writing in my journal, reading a book, binging on a Netflix series, sometimes mindlessly surfing the net.  Despite all those, I do find a lot of my solace in writing.  If home doesn't suit me, you can usually find me at Berea Coffee and Tea with a book :)

Alone time is essential.  Yes, we humans are designed to be social, but there is a time for that, and there is a time for retreat as well.  We all need our "someplaces"; to reflect, unwind, or just simply exist.  To me, it's that very time where I learn the most about myself.  What is your someplace?

Kelly: I consider myself to be a people person. Heck, I'm around them so often that it's just second nature to me. But I think that even the one who loves people the most yearn for quiet and solitude at times. Even Jesus needed times of stillness. On my days off, when I wake up in the morning and the house is quiet, sometimes I just gather in all that is around me. My house, the smell of coffee, the cats either sleeping or running around manically. Even now as I'm looking outside, it's gray but the air is somewhat still with the occasional leave blowing. Very gently. Usually days off are spent in where I say very little, and it's ok for me. I've had Holly ask me how I can just stay at home for days on end and not go anywhere. Other than the fact that I'm used to it, but to be honest it's nice. With a job like mine, I look forward to those quiet days where I sometimes get lost in myself.

For me, I like being outside when the weather is nice. When I take in all that's around me I wonder how people can't believe in God? I write my own blog about my nursing endeavors; it's good for me. I can look back and read about those who have touched me deeply, and also reflect on my growth not only as a nurse but as a person as well. My mom discovered my blog and said "Kelly, I feel like I know you so much more." Often when I write a post I'm at home, alone, reflecting on what I am writing about. My favorite someplace is alone, in my bedroom, with my Bible, journal and iPod. I just let all my guards down and I write. God I truly believes sees what I write, and sometimes I just sit, think and pray. Either in my head or sometimes out loud. And I love my music; music is one of the ways I feel that God speaks to me. So I will close with this; take some time for yourself in your someplace. Wherever that is; we get so busy and wrapped up in taking care of other people that sometimes I think we forget that we need a little taking care of too.