Thoughts on Being Alone

Hubby was gone this past week, meaning I got to enjoy some alone-time. I love time being with just myself. Not that I want to be alone all the time. I’ve been married for more than 40 years, and I enjoy having Hubby around. I hope he’ll be around for a long time. But sometimes I enjoy being able to do what I want to do, when I want to do it, how I want to do it without consulting anyone else. And I like having control of the TV remote. That’s why I like alone-time.
When I’m alone, the house seems to stay cleaner. (Hubby says the same thing when I’m gone so I’m not sure who the messy one is). I can eat if, when, and what I want to (a dangerous proposition) or not eat if I don’t want to (rare). I can stay up late, get up late, eat breakfast, not eat breakfast. I can do anything I want to. What do I usually do? Stay up too late, watch too many movies, and eat too much. In a way, Hubby is my watcher and keeps me in line so it’s good to have him around most of the time.
I get a lot more done during alone-time. No interruptions unless I make them. This past week, I submitted a short story to a contest, applied for a grant, finalized my new book, got the book formatted on the appropriate websites, visited with friends, got 8 hours sleep a night, and wrote for hours. I watched old TV shows and old movies. Those are the best because their humor is my humor.
Being alone helps me to think. I can hear myself and have conversations. Talking things out is helpful, even though it’s just me. Thinking out loud is a good way to examine issues. And book plots. There’s something about hearing the words spoken that clarifies things.
Most of all, I like myself. I’m a nice person and fun to be around. I can laugh at myself so I’m constantly entertained. And no one is around to tell me all the things I’ve forgotten.
Many people don’t like being alone. That’s fine. We all like different things. I wouldn’t want to be alone forever, but it’s nice to have time to myself. I try to use it just like I do non-alone-time: to its fullest advantage. We should all do that. Time is what life is made of, as Ben Franklin said. Use it wisely.