buy the great belonging: how loneliness leads us to each other

In Episode Five, I shared one person’s responses for that episode’s anonymous survey. This person shared a soul story of loneliness saying: “I never thought I would be someone who didn't have a friend to talk to about anything. I do, sort of. All my closest relationships are sort-ofs. Most of my relationships are with people I would go out to eat with if a group got together, but they're not people I'd call upon if I'm hurting or struggling or buried in myself. I'm an introvert but I'm healthiest when I have a few close people around. Now I have friends who live a little far away, are a little too busy, whose lives are separated from mine by work, family, or changes in beliefs. I've yet to figure out how to be an adult — still single, with a job that's boring and unfulfilling — and not feel lonesome almost all the time.”

This person also said that one thing that provides him or her hope is to hear about similar stories of loneliness that others have experienced.

In this episode I share a few examples of soul stories of loneliness, along with encouragement for anyone who might be struggling with loneliness.

Listen to Hope for the Lonely Episode Six: Encouragement for Our Soul Stories of Loneliness.

Charlotte Donlon is a writer, a spiritual director for writers, and the founder and host of the Our Faith in Writing podcast and website. Charlotte’s writing and work are rooted in noticing how art helps us belong to ourselves, others, God, and the world. Her writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Curator, The Christian Century, Christianity Today, Catapult, The Millions, Mockingbird, and elsewhere. Her first book is The Great Belonging: How Loneliness Leads Us to Each Other. You can subscribe to her newsletter and connect with her onTwitter and Instagram.