The pleasure, pain and growth of human connection.
The latest school newsletter says 1600 new homes are expected to be built in our district over the next four years. I can picture them all now with their neutral exteriors, 1/4 acre lots and deckless backsides. Builders plow trees and pastures under daily as new subdivisions unnaturally claim the natural space. There are 30 kids [...]
My nine-year old daughter is hurt because I don't want her by my side every second of the day. She is happiest interacting with others. My thirteen year old son doesn't understand the word energy when I tell him I get energy from solitude. He asks if I mean excitement or physical energy. For the last few [...]
He tentatively reaches across the bed with a warm gentle hand and I ... recoil. I just need a few more delicious moments of morning mind. I need that gauzy, thought- weaving space of nourishing idea play where I breathe fully and smile involuntarily. I need that space where I belong solely to myself. He rolls [...]
I began a conscious love affair with solitude five years ago. I've been apologizing for it ever since. I wrote the notes for this post on the backside of a final letter from my ex-husband. A letter I found in a bedside drawer as I searched for a blank piece of paper to capture my early [...]
My alone feels so good, I’ll only have you if you’re sweeter than my solitude. — Warsan Shire The delicious experiencing of our thoughts is so nourishing it is hard to leave that space. Lovers may entice, cajole, and whimper but still we are drawn to the space of solitude. The space where we are content and [...]
Will I always feel a pang of guilt about loving time alone to work and write? Is it possible the best gift I can offer the world lies outside my role as a mother? Baby-sitters allowed me to preserve my sanity, to the extent that I have it. I always had at least three hours [...]
