I like hanging out with friends. It’s great to be around people and laugh. I really like hanging out with friends, but I also love being alone. Arguably, there are times where I like being alone a lot more than being with friends.

When I was younger, I hated being alone, even when I was alone in my room. I was constantly talking to people. It took me years to figure out that being alone and being lonely were two different things. I had seen the two words and saw them as two, that if I was alone then I was lonely.

Why would I want to be alone? I saw it as having no friends, having nothing I’d rather spend my time doing. This action of constantly talking and communicating with other people made me tired, all the time. I never had time to look back at myself, to have true introspective moments. Finally when I learned how to be alone and happy, it was a blessing. I didn’t have to have something new to say every moment, I could sit in the quiet and just think.

I spend a lot of time alone because I prefer it. I’m introverted in ways, social interactions can truly exhaust me and after a full day of them, I like to be by myself. I know that I spend a lot more time than other people in my room without anyone around, but I enjoy that much more than I enjoy socializing all the time.