On finally learning the importance of HELPING YOURSELF FIRST.

Living alone allows you to - as my friend calls it “explore and get to know your true self”. Over the course of 4 years, I’ve been a damsel in distress on numerous occasions but finally learning and understanding that there are so many things I could actually manage by myself, has transformed me into my own personal Knight (albeit the shining armour). I can now say that I not just have the funds to rent an apartment, I have the skills too. Weirdly enough, I now get called by friends to HELP OUT.

1. Doing proper First Aid - learning to clean and bandage a minor injury without fainting at the first sight of blood or losing the ability to deal with the situation appropriately does not help anybody least of all YOU.

2. Owning a car – From getting back from work past midnight, to being able to commute back and forth from my parents place regularly, to being able to drive a friends injured puppy to the vet. No more taxi services-rude auto drivers or crowded buses. I don’t depend on anyone else’s schedule to go where I want to go – when I want to go. One of the best decisions I have made.  

3. Learning to change a tyre – 3 flat tyres at the same time and 2 excruciating hours was all it took for me to understand the value of this lesson. Now, I think there isn’t all that much to it. It’s a relatively simple job that requires very few tools (that come with the kit in the car), almost anyone can do it and once you learn how to change a tyre you won’t have to worry about hoping for the kindness of strangers to get you back on the road again or worse, waiting for the roadside-assistance when you are stuck somewhere out of your comfort zone.

4. Cooking –  Ever wondered why most people are asked what their favourite meal of all times is – they usually reply with some dish from their mothers or grandmothers kitchen? Because cooking encompasses the word NOURISH in all forms. For me chopping vegetables, peeling, stirring curry, blending spices into a paste - while my mind wanders away from all the millions have-to’s of daily life is both therapeutic and calming at the end of a day.

5. Understand that we share our space in the world with cockroaches and spiders – AND THEN do everything humanly possible so that you don’t have to atleast share your home with them.

6. Roll up those sleeves - and learn how to change a bulb, drive a nail through a wall, drain a clogged kitchen sink, unscrew a pickle jar (a jar sat unopened in my fridge for close to 2 months because I couldn’t do it)

7. Compiling a list of all the numbers to call (not just numbers to all the take out dinner places) – I have my plumber, the closest hospital, the dentist and even the numbers of the closest convenience store pinned to the fridge door.

8. Appreciate yourself – your body – your work – your abilities. When you do not share your living space with any other person you don’t see or hear appreciation often. A delicious dinner that you cooked for yourself, the way the house looks after you’ve finished cleaning for hours or even simply when you catch a glimpse of your freshfaced-trackpant-wearing-self- with-hair-piled-on-top-of-the-head in the mirror as you do the chores around the house looking healthy and pretty – APPRECIATE YOURSELF.