Seeking Comfort In Familiarity

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I'm just back from a two week holiday to Europe and am currently basking in monotony. It is almost funny, how a month ago I couldn't wait to get away from this routine. My partner and I usually get travel fatigue towards the end of every long vacation and we cannot wait to get back to the comfort of our daily tasks. That's the contradictory thing about a set routine. As claustrophobic as it feels at times, it also is immensely comforting. I'm sure I'm not the first one to seek comfort in familiarity and I definitely shall not be the last.

Have you ever wondered why we reach out to watch a movie we have seen plenty of times? Or watch re-runs of a show we know the dialogues by heart? There’s something magical about rewatching an old movie or a show. You know the plot, the characters, the ending, yet each scene feels like a warm embrace. It’s not about being surprised anymore; it’s about returning to a story that you know soothes you, where every joke lands just right, and every tear is predictable but still powerful. When the world outside feels uncertain, familiar movies remind us that there are places, even in fiction, where everything stays the same. It’s comforting to lose yourself in a film that feels like home. While I'm not the one to re-read books, I often find myself reaching out to an old movie or show during my bad days.

As a food lover, I know that food too has this incredible ability to ground us. Two weeks of gorging on Danish pastries, Belgian waffles, steamed mussels, smoked salmon, delicious salads and more European food, we couldn't wait to come back to home cooked Indian food. Of late I have found cooking to be more of a chore than something that I used to enjoy in the past. For the past two days though, I'm cooking my heart out. It’s the taste of comfort, of safety, of certainty. Familiar flavors are like culinary hugs, offering a quiet sense of peace. It’s more than just eating; it’s about finding solace in something you know and love, reminding you of simpler, sweeter times. As much as we love exploring new dining spots, we more often than not tend to step into the places we have been to plenty of times before and end up ordering the same things. We know the taste, the feeling and it always remains the same. A warm hug.

My partner and I love travelling and exploring new places. While the world is vast, full of new destinations and experiences, returning to a city or beach we’ve been to before feels like meeting an old friend. That's Goa for us. We have been visiting Goa every year since we were dating. While the food and the drinks are a huge pull, the place is what brings us back year after year. We know its streets, its sounds, its rhythm. We’re not in a rush to explore everything like the first time; instead, we can savor the small details we once overlooked. The joy is not in discovery but in reunion, knowing that this place holds pieces of us from past visits.

The beauty in monotony, in routines we often dismiss as mundane, is where we find some of the greatest comforts. The morning coffee ritual, the same playlist you listen to while cooking dinner, or the walk you take around the block; it’s these little things that anchor us. Routine offers stability when everything else feels like it’s spinning. There’s a quiet joy in knowing exactly what comes next, in the rhythm of daily life. What might seem monotonous to some is, for others, the bedrock of peace.

Love, at its core, is one of the most comforting routines. The way your partner’s voice sounds at the end of a long day, the familiar touch of their hand, or the way you share the same stories and laugh at the same jokes. Love grows in the soil of familiarity. While passion is often associated with excitement and the unknown, there’s a deep, soothing beauty in the predictable moments of love. Knowing that someone will be there, day after day, with the same warmth and care, offers a sense of stability like nothing else.

In a world that constantly pushes us to chase the new and run an unmarked race, there’s something quietly revolutionary about seeking comfort in the familiar. Whether it’s a movie we’ve watched a hundred times, the food that reminds us of home, or the steady rhythm of a relationship, familiarity offers us a space to breathe. It reminds us that not everything has to change to be meaningful; sometimes, staying the same is the greatest comfort of all.