I believe that learning how to be alone is a life skill, and like most life skills it’s not easy. It’s hard to be alone, with nothing to distract you from your own thoughts and feelings. It’s hard to walk into a restaurant and say “table for one, please.” But I honestly think I’ve grown more by doing things by myself than I have with other people.
I travel a lot, and often those travels are by myself. Eventually I’ll meet up with friends or family, but in between those moments of companionship are stretches of alone time: plane rides, walks, meals. And somehow, instead of hating them, I’ve recently come to cherish those moments.
There are all sorts of “perks” I could use to convince you how great it is to be alone sometimes: wait times at restaurants are nonexistent; there’s no one you know at a concert who can judge you for your loud, off-key singing; you get to finish your favorite book on the plane instead of making small talk; you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. But the real perk is that you get to know yourself through those things. You get to understand who you are when you’re away from everyone you know, and I think that understanding that has helped me become a more genuine version of myself, even when I’m with others.