One of my favorite verses from a Waterdeep song is “though I feel alone, I am never alone, you are with me, O my Lord.” I have been thinking a lot about the difference between loneliness and solitude. When I ponder on being lonely, I become sad. When I embrace the gift of solitude, I find peace. So I share this poem I found today dear reader, that speaks in words with which I do not have a gift.
A New Hymn for Solitude
I found Thee in my heart, O Lord,
As in some secret shrine;
I knelt, I waited for Thy word,
I joyed to name Thee mine.
I feared to give myself away
To that or this; beside
Thy altar on my face I lay,
And in strong need I cried.
Those hours are past. Thou art not mine,
And therefore I rejoice,
I wait within no holy shrine,
I faint not for the voice.
In Thee we live; and every wind
Of heaven is Thine; blown free
To west, to east, the God unshrined
Is still discovering me.
–Edward Dowden
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