The Great Escape

I watched a show today about Esther Reed, a woman who spent ten years living under the identities of other people. One of her motivations was the desire to get away from the pain of her own life. She simply became someone else.


I understand this motivation. At times, I too think about leaving my life behind and starting over somewhere else. Somewhere far away – somewhere no one knows me. Of course I don’t think about the logistics of doing such a thing beyond driving until the car runs out of gas because it is something I would never do. I just have the desire to leave the painful things in my memory behind. Unfortunately, our memories go with us, so running away from the pain would only mean I leave behind all the people in my life who I love.

What would be even better than running away and starting over, would be if our minds were more like computers. I could just delete the memories I no longer wish to remember.

Since I can’t delete memories or run away from them, I will just entertain the fantasy of being someone entirely different – a new face in a new town. I mentally reinvent a new story, and then when the logistics of escaping my life (things like needing a driver’s license, a social security card, and a birth certificate) surface, I’ll snap out of it and carry on with the life I truly love – my life and my wonderful children, husband, family, and friends.