Thirdy Ravena has been meditating and pondering on things while holed up at his apartment in Japan as he continues to recover from a hand injury.
Speaking to ONE News' The Game, Ravena said the Japan stint made him become more independent than ever compared to when he was still in the Philippines.
"I think pretty much that I'm actually independent," said the 24-year-old Ravena. "In the Philippines, I'd always be around my peers and my family. I don't want to be alone. I always wanna do something. I always wanna be out of the house. I feel like when I'm alone that I think a lot and that's not something that I want to do and sometimes you just think about too much things and a lot of things just go in your head."
Read: Thirdy Ravena out for three months
During his recovery period in the hospital and at his apartment in Aichi, the former Ateneo standout said he has made a lot of realizations, trying to keep a healthy mindset amid these trying times.
Due to the COVID-19 situation and strict quarantine protocols, Ravena limits his time in going out of his apartment and instead keeps focused on recovering like performing other workouts without involving his fractured right index finger.
And Ravena has learned to appreciate the much-needed solitude.
"Here in Japan, I actually like being alone. I don't mind being alone," the San-En Neophoenix import added. "I actually like spending time in my apartment. I was so scared to go here knowing that I'm gonna be in a foreign land by myself and it's the first time I'm gonna be away with my family
"But the whole experience was really good for. It was pretty tough but at the end of the day, I learned that I was stronger than I expected, not just physically but mentally as well," expressing gratitude to his family and friends back in the Philippines and his teammates in Neophoenix for the continuous support.
Ravena continues to sit out of games as San-En suffered a three-game skid and slid to a 7-25 record after losing to the Ryukyu Golden Kings last Sunday.
Read: Thirdy Ravena celebrates ‘Setsubun’ in Japan
The Neophoenix will face the 10th-seeded Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (19-13) on Saturday, Feb. 6.