Solitude, Not Isolation

"Solitude does not necessarily mean living apart from others;

rather, it means never living apart from one's self."

Parker Palmer

We all need time away from the maddening crowd to rest, regroup, and recalibrate.  A person can instantly pull up an image of what his or her  personal solitude would look like.  The real contributing factor is who we unknowingly drag along with us in thoughts, memories, and deeds.

Solitude is not to be confused with isolation, as they are not the same.  Isolation is more extreme and can include living off the grid or dividing ourselves from others. Solitude, on the other hand, is a healthy  state of mind with the intention of deepening the relationship with ourselves.

Life purpose can be simply defined as aligning the relationship with our inner parts.  To do this, one must turn inward to search the soul.   Solitude allows us time to integrate all of our parts to better serve God, our world and community.  We can cultivate our space in solitude at a retreat; during a spiritual meditation; or sitting in our favorite space.  To be in relationship with the self generates solitude.