Today I went out during my lunch break to run a few errands, this might sound ordinary and uninspiring to most but for me lately, I find that I rarely leave the house during the week. With the exception of one day that I have to be in the office the rest of the week I’m working from home.
Most times if I need something that can be ordered online I do that. If someone else in my household is going out I may ask them to pick something up if they are going to the store. Today I went out because there were several errands I needed complete and I had to leave the house to get them done.
When my husband and I were married more than 20 years ago we found that we were homebodies, this was before we discovered the joy of going to Science Fiction conventions, antiquing, and traveling. Our weekends were mostly spent at home playing video games, watching movies, and the occasional trip to a theme park. Outside of our marriage, we did not really have any friends, not close ones anyway.
After some years we attended our first convention, and then we joined a second and then a third and we started to make friends, close friends. We now built friendships that would grow and become a big part of us. We started venturing out, making memories, and having adventures.
And then in 2020 happened, we became hermits again. Even after quarantine is over and everyone in the house is fully vaccinated I found I don’t like going to the store anymore, I don’t think it has anything to do about crowds because I don’t mind going to a theme park or a convention. I think it has everything to do with spoons or in my case forks.
It comes down to the fact that unless I am going for something that makes me happy I don’t want to go out. Going out to run errands takes time and energy that I can put towards other tasks that bring me joy.
So does this make me a hermit? Maybe. Is that a bad thing? I’m not sure it is. I am finding joy at home, working on my projects, playing video games, and spending time with my husband. We still go to the theme parks, we still travel and go antiquing. We make time for our friends and take joy in their company.
But during the week I rarely go out, I find ways to avoid going out and it makes me happy when I discover that I don’t have to go out. I still get my exercise in almost every day so I know I’m not lazy. My husband and I have spent years making our home a happy place that brings us joy and comfort and in the end it’s all about what makes us happy.