Tell him to be alone often and get at himselfThat passage inspired me to set aside time for solitude. So when I reported back to JKUAT in May 2008 for my second year, I spent much time alone, sometimes in my room, sometimes in the fields. But I can't remember if I enjoyed the solitude.
and above all tell himself no lie about himself.
...
Tell him solitude is creative if he is strong
and the final decisions are made in silent rooms.
...
He will be lonely enough
to have time for the work
he knows as his own.
What I know for sure is that in the years that followed, I often lacked the inner resources to enjoy solitude. Feeling bitter, guilty and insecure made me long for other people's company.
Not all my moments of solitude have been burdensome though. On some evenings in 2016 when I went walking for instance, I enjoyed my own company so much that I would walk on and on.
Because those moments of excitement have come to me sporadically, I want to cultivate an inner peace that will make me enjoy solitude each passing moment, whether alone in my room or out there on the streets walking.
Surprisingly, I have the solutions to inner peace: being grateful, thinking positively, becoming optimistic, associating with positive people, not taking anything personally and putting everything in God's hands.
Realizing I have had the solutions to inner peace makes me agree with whoever said, "You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."
Now that I have unlocked the solutions to inner peace, putting them into practice is where the rubber meets the road. I will strive to apply them so that I have inner peace each passing moment. So help me God.
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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story on cultivating inner peace, you might also enjoy another one on "Enjoying Solitude".
