I know now why ascetics in the Middle Ages would go off into the desert to be alone. It wasn't because they liked solitude or because they were extreme introverts who were more comfortable alone. Their solitude was like fasting, a self-imposed emotional loneliness that forced them to God. How do you pray for hours at a time? It is simple when there is nobody else to talk to. Prayer is the only option, an absolute necessity.

This is a revelation for me - that people would choose, not only to be alone, but, purposefully, to be lonely. I suppose that I have done the same thing, though I didn't know that's what I was choosing when I did so. I only knew that my mom wanted me to come home to help, and that I needed to do what she wanted. Sure, I knew that I always missed people terribly over breaks, and I assumed that this would be worse, because it would be longer, and because everyone else would still be busy together and moving on without me. But I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I have to trust God day by day.  ¶ 8:20 AM