Jules Weston / Fear of boredom?

As I’ve been describing the natural change process in Knoydart to people, inevitably the focus becomes the solo dawn till dusk experience (described so beautifully and personally in these blogs). 

“All that time alone in a small area?”  

 ”No-one took a book to read?” 

“I’d find it really difficult staying in one place for that long”. 

Those who have done a solo, including myself, claim it is an incredible, unique and unforgettable experience.  I think it’s something to do with having “unstructured” time, alone in nature.  Dawn till dusk at this time of year only lasts about 13 hours and we have decades of “time” in our lifetimes, yet the solo is usually the first experience of this kind where we give ourselves permission to just be, alone, in natural surroundings, without mountains to climb, “things to do” or any other distractions.  We face our fear of boredom and find it to be a shallow myth.  Instead, our mind is set free to roam and wander, to appreciate and reflect upon the things it needs and wants to. 

My daily life is usually so crammed with things to do at such a fast pace that every hour is congested, compartmentalised and severely rationed.  Sure this is modern Western life for most of us, but there is an unsettling feeling that such a pace somehow lacks an appreciation for life itself, certainly a wonder at detail or any time to “care” for anything.   And there is an almost pathological fear that we might get bored or be inefficient in our “use” of time.

In other centuries, human beings wanted to be saved, or improved or freed or educated.  But in our century they want to be entertained.  The great fear is not of disease or death, but of boredom.  A sense of time on our hands, a sense of nothing to do.                                    Michael Crichton, Timeline

And yet that is exactly what the solo experience seems to turn on its head with such profound effect!  

Does anyone have any ideas on why solo wilderness experiences are so  affecting?  If you have done a solo I’d be really interested to hear how the experience affected you personally.