When boredom strikes
IN MY OPINIONKlaus Doring
While being a columnist of “Tinig ng Bayan” (published in Abra) during the 1980s, I remember our Taiwanese coordinator Cristina Lising-Geronga, who expressed herself in innumerable write-ups about the topic loneliness. Sure, “Tinig ng Bayan” has been a publication for Filipinos abroad. Loneliness, borne by Filipinos living abroad while missing their families in the Philippines became a very “normal” expression.
During that time, my Philippine mentor, the late Monsignor Professor Dr. Hermogenes E. Bacareza, Chaplain of the Philippine Community in Berlin, started together with me publishing “Ang Mabuhay”. Believe me, “loneliness” became a main topic in many write-ups.
Nowadays, loneliness and boredom seem to be the splitting image of each other – so to speak being as like as two peas in a pod. While browsing in social networks like Facebook, one can find more and more comments as in “When Boredom Strikes” or so. Boredom, ending up in loneliness – or vice versus?
How comes that loneliness and/or boredom are still a general topics in our today’s society?
Loneliness has been called one of the main diseases even during the last century. It really doesn’t strike not only the Filipinos abroad and their love ones back home. Too often loneliness is being followed by alcoholism, drug abuse and even suicide. Yes, loneliness becomes a modern day plague. I observed several people trying to surround themselves with so-called “friends” only to find that such relationships are often shallow and unsatisfying.
Loneliness can be painful but being lonely or alone at that is not always a bad thing. Ask yourself, how do you use your time, if you are really alone? Do you simply let the time pass without doing any-thing at all? Why not use such time productively? There are many worthwhile activities to engage in, even if you are alone, such as reading, writing, listen to good (light) music, play an (forgotten?) instrument, gardening….
Reading the bible can be also very particularly beneficial. The Word of God is “alive and exerts power” and can take our minds off ourselves.
To break the cycle of loneliness, one must be a giver. Let’s keep an eye, not only and always on our personal interests but also on the interests others. Look around and watch out who needs help, or who needs a real friend or good listener. Once you have spotted such a person, act! Thus, in order to have friends, you must act like a friend. Luke 6:38 says, “Give to others, and God will give to you!” Besides, “There is more happiness (and less loneliness) in giving then receiving,” says Acts 20:35.
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Suggestions, com-ments, questions? You can email me: doringklaus @gmail.com or follow me in Facebook, Linkedin or Twitter or visit www.germanexpatinthe philippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoring sclassicalmusic.blogspot.com.
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