“One is not
obliged to belong so much to all as not to belong at all to oneself.”
~Balthasar Gracian
Many times we feel tied to people
and situations, drawn in perhaps beyond our personal control. This is a horrible reality.
It’s great to just be that fly on
a wall at times, hiding — though not fearfully — from a ravenous world.
There are a great many advantages
in balancing the volume of our interactions.
People do not tire of us and we remain fresh in their sight. Time, also, is won back to us, as so much
time can be wasted on things that really are of no valid concern to us.
This is not against sincere and
life-tending friendship, however, for which we all have need.
But it is about excess.
We should never doubt the peace
that exists on the other side of the noise of life. Suddenly we can find ourselves in this place
where nothingness is bliss as fears no longer attach themselves to us, only joy
at what life has for us in the present as we bask in a seamless medley consisting
the past, present and future — and those pleasant thoughts etched in freedom.
Finally, there is the rather
obvious reality of our sacredness to God in being apart from people and life,
at least at selected times.
Withdrawal – The Art
For some, withdrawing for peace,
silence and solitude is difficult or even impossible, given living situations
in the ‘right now’. Still, the hope
remains. And whilst this hope pervades,
we plan. We enjoy the vision of times to
come, alone with God to enjoy the existence of our being.
It occurs firstly in little
things; the trip to the toilet or in the shower, for good instance. The amount of time is not the issue. It’s the ‘space’ that’s important, for we
generally have more than enough space when we’re thinking creatively.
Entire days are taken — if that’s
achievable — where we can simply vanish from the prying eyes of the world, to
learn how the world would exist without us, for it will.
Then we realise how small we
are. But this is not a bad thing at
all. We actually feel safer in this
world when we realise how big it is, the universe and God. We are
safe.
Cosmically Alone with God – All of Us
Alone we have come into this world
and alone we will leave it (Job 1:21).
Alone we are many times between those vast poles.
This is not really a scary reality
— though many are given to avoid time alone, fearful of boredom or baggage.
Eternal living is very much a
‘now’ reality, in the fact that being blissfully alone is about as good as life
can actually be, for here we are with
God.
Withdrawal from the rush and worry
of life: occasionally done, and enjoyed, is peace.
© 2012 S. J. Wickham.
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