On Being Alone

Ten things I love about living alone.

1) I can be weird and not have to explain myself to anyone. 

2) The remote is mine all mine. 

3) Eat what I want when I want with no explanation or judgement. 

4) I can cry my eyeballs out for no real reason in total privacy.

5) Read whatever I want with no teasing or annoyance for ignoring a significant other. 

6) Crank up the stereo as loud as I want and listen to whatever floats my boat. 

7) Can sing at the top of my lungs without disturbing anyone. 

8) When I can't sleep I can play on my phone or read a book or write in my journal without leaving my bed.

9) No one fusses at me if the house is a mess.

10) No pants! And no one to traumatize or excite by this.

There's plenty more but that's just the top ten.

A single friend of mine has been whining for AGES about hating being alone and wanting a man in her life and being lonely. And sure, men are fine when they're not making you miserable. But they certainly do not guarantee happiness or even the end of loneliness. Some of the loneliest people I know are married or in relationships. I wish I could help this friend learn to enjoy the life she has as a single gal. How to fill her life with things and people that doesn't require a marriage certificate. How to embrace being single and independent. 

I wish I could tell her about another friend of mine who wasted her life on men not worthy of her in her pursuit to find love and avoid being alone. That friend, I discovered last night, died this week, way too young and still letting her belief that she needed a man in her life to be happy rule her life and make her miserable. It makes me sad to know that she never realized that she had everything she ever really needed--a family who loved her, a Heavenly Father who adores her and friends who appreciated and loved her for the beautiful soul she was.

But we each have our own journey to happiness and at the end of the day we each must discover our bliss on our own. 

The above list, however, is for anyone who might stumble upon this blog and need some encouragement on their journey of singleness and being happy with and by yourself. Find your joy where and when you can--even in the small things. Appreciate the people you do have in your life. Look deeper than romantic love to find the kind of love that will never fail you.  And always, always remember that you are far greater than any value another human being could place on you. 

You are priceless.