What I've Learned from Living Alone

 

  

     While all my friends traveled back home to their families or to new place with a car full of friends, I spent spring break alone. I packed up ten days’ worth of stuff and moved to a town I had never been. I moved to house-sit for a family I have no memory of ever meeting--though they know my father. They were gone almost all week. I went grocery shopping, bought smartly, planned a menu, cooked great and healthy meals. I went to church, met new people, and walked around downtown. While there, I conducted nine interviews with strangers for a class project. That was extremely awkward, but a great learning experience. Monday morning, I started my job at the Creation Museum, an hour commute each way. At the end of every day, I came home, cooked dinner, cleaned a little, did some laundry, watched TV, and went to be early. Life simple being alone.

     I learned that I'm good at living by myself. Being independent comes easily to me. I have no fear of caring for my needs. I can cook, clean, organize, run errands, work. Life doesn't scare me. I'm well equipped to do living.

     But, I also learned that I don't want to come home to an empty house every night. I want to cook and clean for more than just me. I want to share dinner, clean for, serve people. Somehow, living for me isn't fulfilling. On my own, life was simple, easy, straightforward. Throughout the week, I found myself wishing that life wasn't simple anymore. I didn't want to have to turn on music and the TV just to fill empty air. It doesn't take much to make me happy--I wanted to make other people happy too.

     I've been hearing a lot this semester that the home can be the priority base of ministry for women--including single women who don't have families of their own. I didn't understand what that meant until this week. In fact, I didn't even know what it was like to live independently in a home. Throughout the super quiet and still week, I had time to think about some of the possibilities of my future. Even if God does not bless me with a husband and kids, then I still want to use my home to serve other people. I want my home to be used to help people, give them a place to stay, aide them to grow. I want to create a welcoming home, where I cook and clean to serve others. What better place to display God's grace than in my own home?

     I don't have a home now. I'm not actually independent, not yet. However, I can still serve in my "home," in my dorm. To be honest, I don't know what that looks like yet, but I am excited to see how God teaches me more. When I went off to college, I knew I was starting a new adventure, and God is continually showing me that there are more and more pieces to that adventure, more and more things for me to learn.

    ~ Alyson