Recently I’ve been feeling like life is for the taking, however, I’ve been holding back on seizing cool opportunities and experiences I want to have because I have no one to do them with sometimes. Sounds silly, doesn’t it?
Typically, and inevitably with adult life, you will have moments where everyone seems busy and dates can’t align for certain occasions. Sometimes you spend so long coordinating dates with people for events you miss out on tickets or end up deciding to do something you’re less passionate about as a compromise, for the sake of friendship quality time. Then afterwards there would be these underlying bubbling resentment, as if my friend’s business prevented me from going to event x, when I could have just gone anyway (even if it does mean riding solo)! So, these days I’m starting to learn to still consider going to things anyway.
It’s an attitude that is growing popular amongst many people nowadays, from what I see. It’s likely what is fuelling the rise in ‘solo travelling’, and to be fair, I can see the appeal. Travelling along means fewer compromises and more control over your itinerary and experience. Even outside of travelling, doing things like having meals alone can be nice. A little treat/ dating thy self! It’s a nice way to carve that ever-so-important ‘me time’ that’s needed to reflect and recuperate before jumping back on the fast-moving train of life. When you do it the first few times you get paranoid that the waiter and people around you (who are all – surprise surprise – in groups) are judging you. But over time you care about these things less – on a basic level you’re hungry and want to be fed, is it a crime to be hungry alone? I think not.
Admittedly though, for me anyway, not every experience is for doing alone and there is a beauty in shared experiences that I still love. And practically speaking, there’s safety in numbers (especially when abroad.) I also, as someone who can be socially anxious, always appreciate having company I feel safe around and that I can navigate social situations with. However, being open and willing to do things alone doesn’t necessarily mean having to choose whether to be a loner or social butterfly, it just gives you more options – and we’re a big of those around here!
TheArtofChatter 