Chronically Lonely People and St. John of the Cross
In addition to taking a short break from studying from exams (resting the ol' brain cells...), I wanted to tell you about an interesting insight I had while studying for my upcoming Social Psychology exam (typically, I'm no great fan of the social sciences, but they aren't all bad...).
I was reading about common traits found in people who rate themselves as being 'chronically lonely.' According to my book, chronically lonely people often think and behave in ways that reduce their likelihood of establishing new, rewarding relationships and lack social skills. This typically causes a spiral into more isolation, and leads to more problems further down the road.
This brings up an interesting point: What happens to all these chronically lonely people? And, should we let them fall into this downward spiral? The answer, of course, is 'No.' As Christians, we believe that we are part of a community united in Christ, and this community suffers as much as its weakest members. We must make the extra effort to reach out to our brothers and sisters who may be lonely or feel cut off from the world.
Is there someone in your family in this situation? In your school? At your workplace? Make an effort to sit with them at a meal. Invite them to a movie. Heck, just say a quick 'Hi, how are you doing?' in the hallway every day. You never know—you might end up liking the person! But it takes time... and can be very hard to do. This is why we must, as St. John of the Cross (whose feast day, coincedentally, is today) pick up our crosses and follow Him down the road to Calvary out of love for Him and for our brothers and sisters.
We should be especially aware of children who are becoming isolated from the outside world by watching TV, spending too much time on the computer or being alone. Say a prayer to your Guardian Angel and to the Holy Spirit to help pick you up and make you an instrument of Jesus' for helping his lowliest and poorest of brothers and sisters.
