Lonely?

It’s a topic of the times. Accelerated by the epidemic, exacerbated by social media, weaponized by the political climate. But other than that...

And it’s not just a generational thing. Not by a long shot. Regardless of age, everyone seems desperate for someone to connect with on some level. Is it fear, do you think? Or insecurity? Or basic shyness? I wonder. Social interaction is a skill that needs to be learned and practiced and supported. It doesn’t come naturally to everyone, especially if they’re umbilically connected to their phones.

I have a thing I do. It’s like an exercise or a pact with myself. Every day, I have to speak to a stranger.  For real. Sometimes it’s just “Hello” but often it goes farther than that. And it’s kind of like flipping a switch inside your brain and theirs. You’re seen. They’re seen. You’re heard. They’re heard. It’s nice. It doesn’t always amount to anything more than a pleasant moment in time. But the next time you run into each other, if you run into each other, you’re not strangers anymore.

I’ve met a lot of people that way over the years. Many have become fond acquaintances. Many have become much more.   

“The eternal quest of the individual human being is to shatter his loneliness.” 

— Norman Cousins