I have lived alone for a few years by choice. Living solo during social distancing and extended quarantine times has opened me in ways I never saw coming.
I have never been a fan of cleaning. I do like the energy that comes after I clean but just the act of cleaning was never my thing. Lately I have found myself observing places that cleaning seemed, though novel, just could be beneficial!When did those dust bunnies have a family under my couch? How did cobwebs create cornered creations inside my gas fireplace?
Then there were the piles of papers, cut out articles on oodles of subjects, and uncategorized markers ,pens , paint supplies, and artist pads. I have always known what lived in each pile of my artistic world that I coexist with, and eventually when searching for a specific item ,I could find it. With so much time on my hands I organized each pile, eliminated close to a ream of unneeded pieces of paper, and discovered CD’s of music from my many past lives. This cleaning and organization only took about eight days.
As my relationship with my quarantined self continued occasionally different and unexpected emotions arose.I hung out with them and they passed. I got deeper in touch with the spiritual practices I do daily, and really understood on a new level why I am who I have evolved into. Communing with nature, journaling, creative writing, breath work, dragon Yin yoga, chi gong, meditation, Reiki, stillness, prayers and doing sacred ceremony for the planet are all practices I have incorporated into my life for many years. It really has come a surprise to me that I took these practices for granted. I know that I chose to start doing each one of them for the benefit they provided. A wonderful Observation in the past month has been the realization that the life I have created for myself including all these practices I do has taught me to be kinder, more patient, and generally a peaceful person.
Making a conscious effort for self-care as well as keeping in contact with like hearted friends and relatives have been crucial elements in this new way of life.
I have been noticing I do not need nearly close to the amount of distracting activities I enjoyed only a month ago. Sometimes I wonder how will I have time to do what I thought I would miss when the quarantine ends. Embracing the opportunity of hanging out with myself has opened a world I was not really prepared to witness!
One of the most wonderful observations in my awakening to the absolute truth is I have had everything I needed for quite a while. I do look forward to face to face socializations again in the future. Until then I think I will continue enjoying my solo retreat feeling pretty comfortable in my own skin. If you had told me that I was actually going to enjoy this imposed Quarantine away from my social world I would have never believed it. This is just more evidence that I often cannot see the best is yet to come and the most wondrous things occur in our lives when we get out of our own way and experience what shows up !
Jaguarwind 