Where do you go to find room to breathe and space to be?
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I love sitting alone in my minivan. Before my oldest child started driving, I waited forever in the lines at my kids’ schools to avoid getting stuck in traffic on the backend after school let out. I would read and write and pray and catch up on social media. ⁣
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A friend sent me a Voxer message a few days ago. After I ran into the library to pick up some books that were on hold for me, I decided to sit in my car in the library parking lot and listen to her message and respond and breathe and be. So that’s what I’ve been doing.⁣
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It’s a gray day. It’s raining. Again. It’s been raining here for so long. At times I’m okay with it and at other times I’m like, some sunshine would be nice. I think a lot of us are struggling with varying degrees of depression. ⁣
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So it’s been nice sitting in my car. It’s been an hour or so and I’ve been accompanied by my friend’s voice and thoughts, the falling rain, the gray sky, and various library patrons walking past my van, going into the library and returning to their cars. ⁣
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I hope you can find a few minutes today to be and breathe and maybe catch up on a voxer message or a phone call with someone who helps you feel less alone in this world.⁣

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.