I spent most of Saturday completely alone.

(My parents and sister were at an out-of-state track meet and Jimmy was fishing with his dad and brother.)

I’ve always liked to be alone, even since I was a little girl. My family would watch a movie in our living room and I would run off to my bedroom to play with my doll house. When I’m with large groups of people I do fine, but I prefer hanging out with people one-on-one.

Because of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media outlets, we’re made to believe that we always have to be connected and have a lot of friends to be acceptable and enjoyable in life. I have always struggled with this.

I have always thought “Why do I like being alone?” “Am I a freak because I don’t like going to huge gatherings all the time?” “Is it bad that I only have a handful of good friends?”

I’ve come to realize that everyone is different and it’s a-okay for me to enjoy being alone. I wasn’t always secure in that statement! I used to go places with someone all the time. If I wanted to go to the library I would ask my sister to come. Shopping? I’d call up my best friend.

Since I’ve realized that I’m not a “freak” because I’m introverted, I have no problem shopping alone, seeing a movie, or having lunch by myself. Learning about who I am and accepting myself as I am is an ongoing, lifelong process, but I just thought I’d share my little realization with you 🙂

Do you prefer to spend time alone or do you like to be with people all the time?