Do you ever wish you could be alone? Not the single kind of alone, but the "just you" alone, maybe listening to some of your favorite albums by yourself. Well, I do. This probably comes from my introverted tendencies to just keep my thoughts in. Sometimes I think it's weird to want to be alone, but I know many people feel this way too. We all just want a little time to recollect our thoughts and not have to worry about being bothered or interacting with another human.

Attending the University of Michigan, a large college campus with over forty-four thousand students, finding a place to be alone and not still be surrounded by someone is hard. This is not a complaint because more often than not, I want to be surrounded by my friends and family. I enjoy moments where I am with others immensely and prefer to be around others almost always to eat, run and hang out with.

I know that there are people in this world who do not like being alone and doing things by themselves. I relate to these people at most times. Doing activities with others makes an experience more enjoyable and you then have a shared moment and memory of the activity you did. But sometimes doing things alone can be just as enjoyable if not more. Sometimes just having a few hours to be alone with your thoughts and be at peace with your own mind is fun.

I do enjoy the times I find an opportunity to be alone.

I am an advocate for doing things alone.

I sometimes hear snarky comments when people would eat alone at a restaurant or sit at a coffee shop alone. Someone might comment "That's sad why are they eating alone" about someone dining alone. I have heard this countless times. But with experience working as a server, when I would engage with a person dining alone, I have come to learn that sometimes people do not have someone to sit and eat with which is sad. But more often than not, this time dining alone is the one half an hour of their day where they can just be alone away from their job, family, and their reality which many fail to realize that this is actually a period of time in their day they enjoy and take for their own mental health. Being alone is sometimes a relief, not having to be active in the company of others, and just having a period of time to relax.

Being alone should not be perceived as a negative state of being, but a positive one.

With time alone, we can all be more introspective, form more collected opinions and truly discover who we are and what we like alone, which is valuable. Being around others influences our own values and opinions and by taking the time to recollect and validate our own moral thoughts and feelings alone, we become empowered and opinionated. Being alone provides us the tools to be more active and involved in situations within our lives and allows us to choose the best choices and paths for yourself.

Take thirty minutes of your day to be alone with your own thoughts, you'll thank me later.