In a world wherein people never stop talking, being alone in your own world becomes a luxury, which shouldn't be the case. Hello! It's Straykat and I'm back with another drawing, but this is a little different from the ones I used to draw. This drawing was supposed to be for the World Introvert Day last January 2, however, procrastination had again took over mixed with a little kick of mood swing. Tada! Here it is, after almost 20 days!

Society taught us to be always out there doing something and connecting with people. That's great, of course. But rarely do they talk about the importance of solitude. Technology made this worse, in my opinion. There were lots of times when I don't post on social media nor chat with people. Then one day, someone messaged me and asked why I no longer post. People think I am very busy but I just don't like posting everything in there. Social media can be very toxic and addictive, and that's what I am trying to avoid. I am done having that "teenager"-like attitude where you post almost everything that happens in your life, plus, uploading tons of photos with your friends, etc. I cringe every time I see an adult post tons of photos, especially selfies, and almost every detail of his/her life.

Living in a fast-paced world is exhausting. And when we ignore to take care of our physical and mental health, we get burnout, sick, and stressed. Sometimes, we set a time frame that we should be achieving our goals and dreams at a certain time so we do everything non-stop to reach it in the time you've set. Well, reaching your goals and dreams is definitely admirable, though we should not lose and overwork ourselves in the process.

Learn to rest, relax, and breathe.

A DAY OF SOLITUDE

We all have different ways to cope up and reconnect with ourselves and keep ourselves away from the noisy and busy world. For me, since we're in the middle of a pandemic, I choose to stay at home and read a book, clean, try a new recipe, or just sleep. So for my drawing, I drew a girl sitting on her favorite chair while reading a book while the sun is setting.

Disclaimer: This is only a drawing and does not represent how my room looks like. How I wish my room looks like that!

If I would imagine how I want my room to be like, it will probably be something similar to my drawing. White will be the dominant color with a touch of earth colors. I've always wanted a desk which contains things that brings me relaxation when I look at them. As you can see, the items on the table are cute-sized cactus, scented candle, cup of tea, and a lamp. Below it are books.

I'm not someone who have jumped to the hype of collecting plants and had made their homes look like a jungle. An ample amount of houseplants is enough for me so I drew only four plants, all on the floor or on top of a table. I like keeping the wall clean and spacious that's why I only drew a painting and a sword on it. That's the kind of painting I wish to have in my room. I also have a sword which I haven't put on display ever since I bought it. It doesn't look like that in my drawing though.

DRAWING PROCESS

My aim for this drawing is to come out cartoon-ish. Visible outlines and simple shading. Though I wanted the girl to look something like those in Korean webtoons. I'm not sure if I have achieve that but I am satisfied with how it turned out.

I was actually torn between these two. The drawing on the left was the semi-finished drawing. Black outlines and no orange glow effect from the lamp. It looks very cartoon-ish. It's much more simple and I like it too. However, I was aiming for a certain look, so I changed the colors of the outlines and added an orange glow to soften the drawing. Her cheek went a bit chubby when I change the outline's color. Lol. And maybe you have noticed the book the girl is holding. It's the blue book by Mark Manson. I chose this book for the drawing because it's the book I haven't finished reading for almost a year now.

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Medium: Digital (Wacom Intuos Comic)
Program: Clip Studio Paint
Time: 5 nights (Super lazy mode. Lol)
Gif made on Photoshop CS6

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Rest. Relax. Breathe. Disconnect.

One cannot function at it's best when it's tired. Imagine a car being drove non-stop. It's fuel will run and tires will get worn out. In order to continue on the road, you have to stop and refuel your car. To avoid accidents, you have to stop and change your tires. You also have to replenish the water and oil. This is the same for us humans. We have to take breaks to recharge. It doesn't matter what things you should do during the break as long as it brings back your energy to function at your best again. And whether you are an extrovert or introvert, you need space for yourself once in a while to bring back your strength and introspect. It's okay to disappear to gain back your energy. It's okay to take your time and keep yourself away from the noisy world. Disconnect to connect.

Hi, I'm Straykat. :)

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