Reflection
None of us has all the wisdom or all the clarity needed in every situation. It is one of the values of authentic, trust- based community to provide a place for respectful discernment. Whether it be family or any other grouping, it should enable us to experience what enables us to reject our own self- importance and move toward new perspectives. To have occasional feelings of isolation is part of our human experience. Sometimes things that seem so clear and self-evident to us are viewed with skepticism or even rejection by others. It causes us to wonder if we walk on the same planet and a sense of frustration or separation can absorb us. This is when withdrawal is not the solution. It is when we are in need of a person or persons with whom we can talk openly and be restored to balance. We need a place where our insights can be a breakthrough rather than a breakdown.
Prayer
Lord, to whom shall we go?
John 6:68
Action
When do you experience feelings of isolation? How do you resolve this?
Suggested Readings
Give instruction to wise persons, and they will be yet wiser: teach just persons, and they will increase in learning.
Proverbs 9:9
A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
He rages against all wise judgment.
A fool has no delight in understanding,
But in expressing his own heart.
Proverbs 18:1-2
If you want to end your isolation, you must be honest about what you want at a core level and decide to go after it.
Martha Beck
Isolation is a dream killer.
Barbara Sher
We can learn the art of fierce compassion – redefining strength, deconstructing isolation and renewing a sense of community, practicing letting go of rigid us-vs.-them thinking – while cultivating power and clarity in response to difficult situations.
Sharon Salzberg
We don’t function well as human beings when we’re in isolation.
Robert Zemeckis
Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.
Rollo May
National isolation breeds national neurosis.
Hubert H. Humphrey
I believe that dialogue is the key to breaking through our tendency to separate and isolate. Dialogue changes isolation and loneliness into connection and interdependence.
Vinessa Shaw