Heartbeat matching the speedometer of the car you are sitting in as mile markers pass you on the highway. With each green sign reading exit numbers, you exit the ringing of your phone, the screen reading “Mom calling.” It’s a rush and you don’t know if it is a good feeling or not. Whatever this feeling is, there is no going back. Spring Break has just begun, and you’ve run away from going home…without permission.

The plans were all set. You were going to tell your mom that going home for Spring Break, your senior year of college, was just not an option. Knowing your own mother, however, kept the words locked tightly between nervous lips as she says, “I will pick you up on Friday.” Friday rolls around, classes end, and you have thirty minutes to pack up your things and gather in the parking lot. With every passing car, your head whips left and right as if you are being watched by someone. You snuggle low in the front seat of the car and prepare yourself for an adventure. No, the car you got into was not your mothers. You’ve taken the role of front seat passenger of your friend’s car; one of the three cars in your caravan. No, you are not on your way home. You are leaving campus and cruising to the coast. Charleston, here we come!

Perhaps you should have told your mom ahead of time. The anger would have evaporated eventually. Running away was a bold move and, of course, you know it. If you are trying to build trust with your parents, this is not he way to do it. You also know, if you hadn’t done it, you would have been at home, confined to the four walls of your room for an entire week. There is no way you could mentally manage that for another consecutive year, especially this being your last year with some of the greatest people in your life. These are supposed to be the greatest years of your life, and you’ve given into every wish and rule your parents have set in place. After long weeks of exams, assignments, and other work, it was time to break free.

Parents do what they can for their children. As a result of their immense love for you, they attempt to hold on to you as long as possible, pulling at the iron leash around your neck tighter and tighter with the passing years. Iron rusts with age, as does compliance when given unquestionably for too long. Cages are not for animals and people are not meant to be confined to the walls of school and home forever. There is an entire world out there to be seen and experiences, both good and bad, to learn from. Helicopter parents cannot stop their children from breaking away at some point and living life for themselves. Just as Rapunzel escaped in Tangled from the mother who always “knows best,” so will the child who longs to see the world and actually live in it. Going away to college is often the open door to this new freedom. Some of us lose ourselves in this newly found world with less restraints. Some of us take it one slow, careful step at a time. This is where you are in your life.

Music and friends surround you. Each passing moment of this adventure is one you hope will be engraved in your racing heart for the rest of your days. From relaxing at the beach house, dancing around with a glass of wine and a few tunes, to simply laying around chatting about whatever came to mind, the simple moments end up being the greatest. So Spring Break 2016 has started with simple, yet unforgettable moments to keep stored in the most precious confines of your heart. You take a moment just to take it all in. You realize you wouldn’t want to change a single bit of it. The faces of each and every friend by your side delights your core. Had you not escaped, you would have missed out on these memories. After years of denying yourself from taking a chance and doing something for yourself, in order to remain in your parent’s good graces, the filial child take a huge taste of the pie called independence.

Here you are in the first week of March. There is still a chill in the ocean breeze that sends you into shivers and raises small bumps across your skin, but that adds to the adventure as you question the sanity of your friends who take the plunge into the waves of the sea. Here you are, dancing side by side with your roommates, toes digging into the cool, wet sand. Here you are, almost 22 years old and playing with old friends and new friends as children would on a playground. When you’re not playing, you can’t help but to anticipate the next delicious meal from a city that abounds in so many foods you don’t have the time, nor a large enough stomach to eat. You all walk through the open-air market, then stop to eat. Return home and get ready to go out…to eat. One of the greatest joys of traveling is eating, and you get to do this with great friends.

Here you are, dolled up to take the coastal city under the stars that seem to shine brighter here than in your home time. The night is young, your friends are amazing, and Charleston is yours for the taking. It is a night to remember and you pray you always will. Here you are, morning light waking you on the final day of this getaway. As the trip winds down to a close, there is a heavy feeling in your chest. There are so many things you wish you could have done still. There are words you wanted to tell some of your friends at the “opportune moment” that maybe you missed because time, unfortunately, flies at its highest speed when fun and joy is involved. All good things must come to an end. As the final gusts of wind runs its invisible fingers through your hair, at the edge of the old, private beach house dock, you can feel nothing more than a heart full of gratitude to be able to experience this short, yet much-needed, trip.

So, as you drift in and out of sleep while miles of distance add up between you and a place and time you wish you could stay forever, an endless wave of thoughts storm your mind. Here you are on your way back to reality. Here you are, on your way to accept whatever punishments your parents may present you. However, you can help but think this was not only for your benefit, but also for theirs. Perhaps, after this bold, secretive excursion of yours, they will realize that the leash must disappear. Perhaps there will be a mutual understanding that these are your final moments in college. The real world is waiting, and now, more than ever, is the time to experience the world on your own. Gratitude and love for parents who have done all they can to protect, provide, and care for you do not fade. Like the waves of the winter sea that met your toes on the sand, your love for them will be constant. In fact, with time, this love will grow. There will be many times when you will be thankful for the strict upbringing you received. Mom, I love you, and I hope you will forgive me for worrying you, but I also hope you will understand why this had to be done. Everything happens in its time. Your time arrived and, this Spring Break, you took hold of it without regrets. Whatever the price may be, here you are Spring Break Runaway, cherishing every second spent on the greatest Spring Break weekend of your life.