Living Alone

Another article in my beloved Time magazine talks about the rise of solitary living in recent years. Though I've not outright said it, you've probably guessed by now that I live alone. And I would NOT have it any other way. Yes, I'm lonely sometimes. Yes, I would like to occasionally have someone to come home to, to talk to. But I LOVE living alone. "Living alone allows us to do what we want, when we want, on our own terms." This ability trumps any notions otherwise.

I've previously discussed how being alone and being lonely can be exclusive of one another; it's possible to be one or the other or none or both. "What matters is not whether we live alone but whether we feel alone."

There are many times that I desire and seek out social situations, and I have the ability to do so, while still being able to return to my home, alone, at the end of the night. "People who live alone compensate by becoming more socially active than those who live with others." Hence why when your friends get married, they also disappear. It's sheer fact that single people tend to lead more social lives than their married counterparts.

Social escapades always result, though, in a need for me to recharge, to reboot, which is directly related to my tendency toward introversion. "Living alone can offer...the time and space for restorative solitude."

It also provides for moments of peace and contentment. "Living alone can help us discover who we are as well as what gives us meaning and purpose." And there is no greater reward than living a purposeful life and a life of purpose.

Ultimately, "living alone helps us pursue sacred modern values - individual freedom, personal control and self-realization." Values that I continuously challenge myself to improve upon.