
A while ago I spent a week alone in my house while my wife and kids visited distant family. It was glorious.
I made the food I wanted to eat, every meal was excellent. I chose a movie I wanted to watch, nobody complained. I sat in silence, nobody drilled me with questions. I cleaned up after myself, nobody else was there to immediately undo my work. I got several home improvement projects done, working on them undisturbed for 4-5 hours at a time. I slept starfish-style in the bed, no fear of elbowing anyone. I could think for hours at a time, no interruptions.
I made sure to tell my wife everything productive I had done when she called, and also how difficult the home improvement projects were, let alone my full time job. I wanted her to think she was the one on vacation, not me. After all, I was the one who was "just at home". But the truth really was that I hadn't experienced true peace and quiet for many years, and it brought me a wonderful joy.
