Living On Our Own…

We start our lives by living with parents, and then we grow up and eventually with our new found families. However, we (both boys and girls) have a slim room after school and before marriage when we can venture out in the world and live by ourselves. (Maybe with friends, in hostel, or PG)!

Many families frown upon the idea of letting their children out in the big bad world on their own, fearing the worst. It is truer if the child in question in a female.  It would be irrational to eliminate the fact it is a scary thought for the parent in question, but living on your own teaches a lot and frames his/her personality for the future.

Few things that we learn from living on our own:

Money Management – There is limited money that is either being sent from home or you are earning.  Everything has to be managed in that money itself… which includes all the bills, food, transportation and leisurely activities.

Time Management – It is so easy at home to request mother for breakfast because I am running late for college or work. However, once we are on our own, no matter how late it is we have to do our own chores. So getting into a routine to fit all tasks in the stipulated time period happens eventually.

Taking Responsibility – Chores will either be done or will be piling up for later. So a person learns whether to do it on a regular basis or do it when there is no other option. Also, in case of a get together, it depends on the person organizing it to get all the stuffs to ensure that the get together is a success.

There are so many more pros of learning to live on our own. Obviously there are cons too. So we asked few of our readers, who have lived on their own or are doing so now, to tell us what according to them are the major plus and minus sides of doing so.

Ambika Banthia (28 & Banking Professional) says, “A sense of freedom and responsibility in one deal; Pros: you get your own mental and personal space. You have the freedom to read, sleep, party, or just laze around depending on your mood. Cons: Cooking and eventually may be you get too comfortable with this lifestyle”

Our Editor, Sohini Maitra (38), who used to live on her own  for about 10 years after college, said, “Living on my own has taught me a few things like cooking, doing my own chores and most importantly waking up in the morning with an alarm and not by mother”. However she also believes all is not bed of flowers living alone. She further added, “I realized 2 huge cons of living alone… first – when you are sick, you still have to do everything on your own; and second, if you are on your own and have a dog, like I did, every moment spent outside home was full of concern that the pup is alone at home… Other than this, everything was fine and dandy”.

So we thought is it any different for the men folks who live on their own. So asked couple of them from different fields and different age groups… Here’s what we got!

Rajesh Chawla ( 23 & BPO employee), has issues of a different level altogether. “Much as I love the freedom of living on my own, I have major issues in getting my torn clothes stitched. I had to learn how to stitch a rip or a button. Also there are those many times when you can eat outside. So I am learning how to cook with the help of Youtube. I think Mum will be proud when I make her taste my dum aloo this time when she arrives”.

Lastly, Amit Sinha, (44 & Media Professional) has only one issue of living on his own… “I don’t have a washing machine, so I take all the clothes, which needs to be washed, to my aunt’s place (who lives nearby), on weekends and get them cleaned. I have employed a cook so eating at home is not an issue”.

So folks, we at Itemmom strongly believe that everyone should live on their own at least for a year or so if not more. It definitely helps one understand the realities of life.