(Every morning, after breakfast and chores,  I go into my office and before I turn on the computer, I turn off my phone,  I sit in silence.  Where am I, I feel? Where is my spirit today? At first, I felt lonely and then I found the joy of solitude, this is how I begin every day. I decided to share these meditations with my readers on the blog and see what happens. So far so good.)

In a sense, all human beings are alone. I’ve always felt alone, even when I have people all around me. We are all alone, that is the human condition.

We all know aloneness. We all know loneliness. Few people know solitude.

No other person is just like me, will think like me, act like me, love like me, frighten like me, anger like me.

We are each unique, a blessing, and at times a curse. Being unique sometimes translates to being alone and feeling alone.

The challenge for me comes when aloneness becomes loneliness or whether I permit it to lead us to solitude. For me, solitude is very different from loneliness, the very opposite.

Loneliness is painful, it makes me uneasy and fearful or cause me to cling to others in fear and desperation. Solitude does the opposite,  it is healing, it lets me respect the uniqueness of others and helps me build community.

I feel there’s a choice. When I choose something consciously and own it, it is never frightening and always leads me to inner space and peace. All I do is sit still, close my eyes, clear my head and wait for the silence to surround me, I take a deep breath or two, and go inside. I leave the outer world outside of me.

Loneliness always brings me to solitude if I accept it and let it grow. Solitude is sweet, nourishing.

This question of solitude versus loneliness is a lifelong struggle, like many elements of spirituality, solitude requires conscious choices about who to be with, what to think about, when to meditate, how to pray, and when to ask for help.

In solitude, my mind, heart, and soul can grow, in love, understanding, courage, and strength.  Solitude is grounding, I can feel my spirit grow and find the ground. beneath me.