Alone

... is a word that stands by itself, carrying the austere, solitary beauty of its own meaning even as it is spoken to another.
— David Whyte, "Consolations"

To be alone for any decent length of time is an invitation for the soul to play in the backyard of awareness. A well of gravity pulling you in, slowly, into a fear caused by its own presence. Like vapours arising from a steaming cup, the roots of our disposition dance with a solemn grace, getting magnified in the absence of another. Depending on the time of the day, exhaustion, obstacles and challenges, hills seem mountains and drizzles seem torrents amidst this solitary presence.

Being alone for long can be an open call for the devil to play uninterrupted in the shadow of its presence. The inherent, instinctive animal within us, robbed of its power in childhood, sacrificed on the altar of conformity, comes to visit in various forms, subtly or otherwise, manipulating the disposition to its will.

It takes an act of courage to recognize these unconscious influences as arising from something we do not necessarily identify with, but acknowledging their existence all the same, since they are ever waiting, to slowly infiltrate the next flight of fancy. Being alone then, can allow you to view them in plain sight, shining a light on them and telling you things about yourself you may not want to hear. In a culture where spending time alone can be frowned upon and attributed to maladjustment, maladies, misinformation and other such stuff, it is easy to fall prey to such prejudice. Yet, the gifts of solitude are present nonetheless, their existence unwavered by glaring eyes.

A statement of non-conformance, of straying off the beaten track, while appealing in its exploratory nature, can tend to be quite unforgiving in the courage required to sustain it. One may get lost upon a mountain having missed the trail far back, yet traipsing through the shrubs and undergrowth, carrying on ahead in blind conviction. In reality, it is this sort of denial and perhaps arrogance that may become its undoing. Being alone is not really the fulfilment of an idealization, it is something to be respected for the value it brings, but not blindly followed to the point of unsustainability or doom. An appreciation of the other, in love and partnership, friendship and pleasant company brings with it a different flavor of beauty, the other wing, without which flight would not be possible. Like in most things worthwhile, temperance is the key to harnessing the power of solitude.

Cover art by yours truly, moments before getting lost on a trek.