Thoughts On A Sunday Morning (from away)

“I walked a mile in your shoes/ Now I’m a mile away/ And I’ve got your shoes” - Kings of Leon

I’m a big believer in the idea that the best way to understand how others can see things so differently is by putting yourself in their situation. Which is one of the reasons I decided to house/cat sit alone in Guelph this week (that, and Stacey has been after me to let her have some alone time in our house for a while now. Something I fairly regularly get).

Although it’s only been three days, I’ve already noticed a few things:

- being alone in a city actually feels much more isolated than being alone in the country. I guess it’s because I can see and hear so many people, but few, if any, acknowledge my existence.

- Which makes me feel a little ghost-like. No one knows I’m here, who I am or what I’m doing. And if they do see me, it’s only for brief glimpses and in passing. This near invisibility can be very freeing.

- But I can also see how it could feel depressing. And could also lead to some very self-indulgent thoughts, mainly because there is no one else (except the cats) that I have to negotiate with or make room for.

- I can also see how this isolation could lead to anger at the world. Especially when so much interaction then comes through social media.

It makes me thankful for the friends and family, that are normally close by, who are willing to do things with me at the drop of a hat. But who also understand when I need my alone time. The best of both worlds.

Time to go sunbathe on the back deck with the cats.

Happy Sunday!