I hate the question, “What did you do last night?”
And when you’re response is you did nothing, you are pitied and have to pretend you pity yourself too.
But an evening at home doing nothing is a type of heaven – in the same way a social evening is for an extrovert.
I wasn’t sad doing nothing last night.
The lesson is – next time someone asks what you did the weekend, tell them unabashedly you did nothing and you enjoyed it.
Being an introvert, I revel in being alone at home. It’s the only reason I look forward to the weekend.
Wednesday evening, my legs collapsed and was left with tingling toes and fingers. I’m awaiting subsequent blood test results.
I had an engagement. And thought my ailment was a perfect excuse to avoid the outside world.
But I dragged myself to the street carnival. And it was nice spending time with two lovely people. It was really nice.
The lesson is – sometimes, I should just go with it. Say yes. But of course not all the time. I do also need my peace.
I had a heated argument with a friend who believes that I don’t reveal enough about myself to show people the person I am. And he said maybe that was the reason I was still single – I needed to open up more.
I said there are many people who like me the way I am. And he added the people who cling on to me are desperate.
It hurt me in ways he still doesn’t understand. I told him as such. And I was told that I’m overreacting – he just spoke from his experience. Me saying I forgave him was unwarranted because according to him there was nothing to forgive because he didn’t hurt me.
There are a few lessons from this experience.
Firstly, some people are introverts and we live in an extroverted world. Introverts are made up of layers and reveal those layers over time. If you are an introvert, be a proud introvert – there are other people out there like you. There are people who will enjoy every part of your introversion.
Secondly, some people are self-conscious and project themselves onto other people. My friend thought I should be like him – reveal myself in the first hour of meeting someone. But he failed to recognise that he is single too.
Thirdly, some people won’t understand you. And that is fine – there are people who will get you.
Fourthly, you shouldn’t change for people to like you.
Fifthly, other people can’t decide whether or not they hurt you. If you feel hurt, it’s your feelings. And you are entitled to feel so regardless of what they think.
oneyearoflearnings 