The time has come.
I (Wendee) would like to announce that I am officially stepping down from the helm of The Rabbit Hole Parties Adelaide, and I am handing over our baby to Andrew and Dave. There has been a ton of soul searching, and much shedding of tears.
And since the epic Pretty in Pink 5th Birthday Party last weekend (my final party as TRH host), there has been more than a tinge of sadness as the nostalgia hits me like a ton of bricks.
But not an ounce of doubt or regret.
It surprises me that the tears never seem to run dry.
The memory of the 5th Birthday Party will forever be etched in my mind and will always bring a smile to my face.
We wanted a hundred pink helium balloons for each year we’d been around, so we ordered 500 helium balloons. It took 11 trips in 3 cars with much swearing and giggling over 2 hours to transport them to The Rabbit Hole!
It was all worth it to see and hear the delighted gasps of our guests as they walked into a sea of pink balloons when they arrived.
Not sure about the guests, but I personally took great delight in watching them get all tangled up in the floating balloon strings. I giggled at the hilarity of the intermittent balloon straying upstairs to the play areas. I playfully did not allow our guests to leave at the end of the night unless they took at least a dozen balloons home with them.
But the highlight was yet to come.
That night, we were given a birthday card by a guest who would have had no way of knowing the significance. I was speechless when I read it.
It reads:
To Wendy, Andrew and Dave
Thank you for being our Short Bus.
All our appreciation,
Happy 5th Birthday.
Flashback to 17 years ago.
I was browsing through the DVD rental store when a movie in the arthouse section caught my eye. “Shortbus” sounded interesting! When I watched it at home, I was absolutely blown away. Here it was on my TV screen .. my utopian world in technicolor.
My vision of TRH when she was born, is based on Shortbus. Have a look inside the DVD drawer at TRH. There’s an illegally burned DVD copy of that original I rented 17 years ago.
I never dreamed that one day I would ever be able to make my fantasy utopian world a reality. But as luck (or fate) would have it, the universe gave us an opportunity and we took it.
The last 5 years has been nothing short of incredible.
Grief
Leading up to last weekend, despite it being my decision to step down, it was hard to let go. I felt that by giving up now I had failed. There was still so much more to achieve at TRH.
I grieved hard.
But this card:
Showed me I was wrong.
What do you know .. my dream has already become reality.
The Rabbit Hole is now already recognised as being a safe, fun upmarket sanctuary for the sex-positive swinging lifestyle community.
I haven't failed.
I am so very proud of what The Rabbit Hole has become.
I leave her in the capable hands of Andrew and Dave.
Love you all to the moon and back.
Wendee x
p.s.
Goodbyes are not forever,
Goodbyes are not the end.
They simply mean I’ll miss you,
Until we meet again.