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I used to think that there was one sure-fire way to poverty: being (and living like) a hermit. Not only did I think this, I was 100% doubt-free certain of it. Which was quite a bummer, because I'm a hermit myself. In the closet for years, so to speak, until I decided to come out and declared myself a Happy Hermit. (This blog explains it all.) So after I decided to be a Happy Hermit, I googled the phrase 'happy hermit' to see if something would come up. And I found 2 very, very interesting things. The first thing I found was a talk by a monk entitled 'To be a happy hermit' Very inspirational! He calls himself a professional hermit and lives in a real cave!!! (Yes! I want that too! As long it comes with superfast WiFi, central heating, a bath, dishwasher, lots of daylight coming in and some other things I can't think of right now.) And in this talk he says something that blew me away: There was a time when being a hermit was an actual profession In eighteenth century England (where else?) it was quite fashionable for rich people to have their own hermit. Ornamental hermits, they were called. You had to live in a cave on the estate, and had to stay there for 3 years or something. And when the owners of the estate threw a dinner party, they took their guests for a walk afterwards to look at the hermit! That is priceless! I LOVE that story. So it IS possible to make money being a hermit after all! I'm doing it myself as well, of course, since the beginning of this year. But thankfully in my own and totally different way - I'm not at display like an animal in the zoo (and I'm not fired when I visit the local pub (If you'd like to read more about Ornamental Hermits you can do so here.) It's still fresh for me to look at my hermit-ness as something positive and even my strength, but I'm getting more and more used to it. I've totally embraced it now, and truly see it as a quality. A quality today's society definitely needs. Everyone is always working, running, doing, numbing themselves with whatever. Who takes time to be alone and reflect? Hardly anyone. But in order to stay sane, relaxed, happy and connected to your true purpose and the meaning of your life, you need quiet time. You need time alone. And who could be better equipped to inspire and teach others how to do that than a hermit? I rest my case. The monk says something similar in his talk. You can watch it below if you like. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx7n5CpmWRM Oh, and if you consider yourself to be a hermit as well, please let me know in the comments on my blog here: http://www.brigittevantuijl.com/not-my-business/are-you-a-happy-hermit-too/ I don't know anyone who is besides monk-guy and myself, so it would be great to see if there are more of us out there! Other thoughts & comments are welcome as well. I'd love to hear what you think!
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