I'm a solitary person by choice. People who know me now have a hard time believing this, because in the past few years I've become a great deal more outgoing, and made better friends with my life-of-the-party side. But the fact is that most of my life, I've been a quiet person who kind of hung around the edges of whatever group I was near. During my high school years I attended a boarding school, and that's when I began to come out of my shell and learn that I even possessed a life-of-the-party side. In adulthood, particularly during times of stress and trauma (there have been many), I reverted to solitude. In fact, I nearly became agoraphobic, and there were periods when I couldn't work in my own yard because I was afraid of being seen.
So it's interesting that I would say the labyrinth is less fun when not shared. In fact, I still prefer to walk it alone with God and my own soul. But I do love to have it open to others, and sometimes to post readings and things that others will share when they walk it. That's because, as I grew, I was able to let go of the fear and hiding (not a healthy part of solitude) and begin to re-integrate my hermit and my party animal together again. Here in Berea, I've become more whole and complete than I've ever been, so now I like to share my life.
But I always need to remain aware that I'm a person who is recharged by solitude and --let's see, discharged? Run down? Hmm, there's no good term!--by community. We all need both, there are gifts in both, and we gain (and lose) from both, but we have to know which is the one that, in general terms, uses our energy, and which is the one that builds our energy back up.
Which is it for you?
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