I’ve always hated the phrase “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” I thought that it was a manipulative, cowardly way to basically say “I need time away from you or I’m going to strangle you.”
But as I get older (and hopefully wiser), I have begun to realize that the cliché may have some merit.
In general, I’m not the type of person that enjoys time by myself. I love the sound of my kids clunking through the halls while the dog wrestles with her squeaky toy. I truly enjoy the hustle and bustle of the newsroom at work, including the loud Hispanic music and the boisterous political debates. Noise has always comforted me – providing a sense of security.
This week, though, I have been searching for quiet and have yet to find it. With a stack of papers to grade and a rigorous schedule of freelance assignments, I needed some alone time. I have yet to find my serenity.
I tried locking myself in my room only to find Facebook and Twitter as noisy and distracting as the sound of my kids body surfing on the hallway hardwood floors. I tried going to the public library, only to find that I arrived on a day of construction, with drills humming through my search for sanity. I tried sitting on a bench on campus, yet the random outbursts and singing from students with harmonicas and makeshift drums made it impossible to even think.
At one point, I was so crabby that I couldn’t stand to be around myself. I needed to be absent, away from all living things, so that my heart could grow and my sanity would stay.
Although my subtle attempts to make myself absent went awry this week, my quest for quiet made me a firm believer in the truth of “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” I want to be absent for just a little while, so that I can once again enjoy the noisy things in life.
– Shannon Philpott
Blog Entry: Sept. 15, 2009
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Shannon Philpott-Sanders 
Shannon, you should know I look up to you for a number of reasons, but you ability to handle stress and being pulled in a million directions has to be number one. You are endlessly patient (even with the Spanish music and debates) and remind me to keep my cool-or at least try. I hope you get some peace. : )