We're all alone

So, I'm sitting here listening to the rain. The persistent drumming of the droplets on my roof has always been a comforting feeling to me. I just came in the door from some adventure or other. I'm sitting here contemplating what directions my life should take. I've always been a fairly gregarious person, but I don't really like to share my inner thoughts and feelings with people. In fact, I don't really know if I've ever truly shared the true essence of myself with anyone. Maybe I'm frightened. Maybe, I'm simply the type of person that knows that no one else could possibly understand my thoughts. The avenues upon which they meander slowly through my head. This is probably for the best. We all, when it comes down to it in this world, live, and die, alone.

Loneliness and the state of being alone are two different things. Loneliness, by its very definition, reflects a person's desire to be with and around other people. We miss our friends, we miss our families, in the case of some people, we miss our significant others. Sometimes I feel loneliness, but it's always a temporary feeling. When the shroud of social niceties and interactions is stripped away, all we have in the end is ourselves. I think that recognizing our true state as one of singularity, of, ultimately, lonesomeness, not loneliness, is essential to finding peace in our lives. We may have companionship, friendships, families and coworkers, but in the end, our actions and by extension our successes or failures are ours alone. We bear the final responsibility. Support is always nice, but the final decision, the final resolve, rests with the individual. I think if more people realized that they are alone, they would be happier. They'd be fulfilled in their own desire to bring about their own happiness. Happiness, like any emotion, is a choice that rests with the individual. If we can learn to be happy alone, we can be happy under any circumstances. I believe this is important, because at the moment when we exercise our reason for existence--free will--we are always alone. No one can make a choice for us. For me, or for you. The choice rests with you, alone.