I am an introvert. Always have been and always will be. Pulling away from people to recharge my energy by myself is what I need. Silence and solitude are everything to me.
Since becoming a father, silence and solitude are two things I don’t get a lot of anymore. It’s an unfortunate truth of being responsible for a little human that depends on you for everything.
Even though I appreciated silence and solitude before, now I view it as the most valuable and intentional time I can spend. Even in the midst of a worldwide pandemic where we are missing people and the freedom to go out, I want…I NEED more silence and solitude.
I can’t lie…It’s one of the main reasons I wake up between 4:30-5:00 AM everyday.
Is your mind always racing to the next thing? Do you find yourself unable to catch up in your mornings? Are you drained physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually?
If you answered yes to those, you NEED silence and solitude. Here are some of my top reasons for building intentional time for silence and solitude:
1. Silence the Noise
The world around us is filled with so much noise. It comes at us from all different directions. You turn on the news and you get noise. You open up social media and you get noise. You listen to a podcast, open a website on your browser, check your email or open your text messages and all that you get is noise.
Step away, put the phone down, and listen to hear yourself breathing and to hear your heart beating. You are alive. You are not a zombie. You are a living, breathing, and valuable person. We can forget how alive we actually are. Cut out the noise and step into the silence.
2. Slow Down the World
If you’re anything like me, you’re constantly moving towards a new goal. Heck, even if you’re not like me, it’s hard to keep pace with everyone else or at least that’s our perception. Personally, I speed the world up so much I can miss important moments. I am so consumed by the next task that I miss what my wife asked me to do or the funny new thing that our 8 month old daughter just did.
Stepping away from everyone and everything allows you to slow time down. It slows your pace. It gives you rest and room to breathe. You need this time and you deserve this time. Step away and slow down the pace of the world around you.
3. Mine Your Heart
Many times when I have been overworked or I haven’t had the opportunity to pull away from people I can feel a weight inside of me. That weight pushes me to be cynical and I normally don’t figure out the root of the issue until it’s too late.
Routinely and intentionally pursuing silence and solitude creates space for clarity. It allows you do dig through all of the gunk and muck that the world has used in an attempt to bury your heart so deep that you lose your purpose. Don’t let life do that to you. Dig your heart out. Mine away at it so that you can return your heart to its purest form.
4. Return to Reality
We can get sucked so far into the race of life that it changes our perception of reality. It changes who we are and what we know to be true.
We view the path to success as the need to be selfish instead of being selfless.
We see respect as something that must be earned instead of a something that should be given from the start.
Forgiveness is only possible when we get even because not forgiving hurts the other person more than it hurts you.
All of these are wrong, but if you listen to this noise world for long enough your perception of what is true will be gone. The goodness of mankind does not shine through. Instead, the depravity of mankind shines through. It gives the brokenness of the world and sense of normalcy with no hope for change.
Pull away. By yourself. Keep quiet. Listen.
Don’t allow yourself to be eaten alive by the world around you. Don’t let the world determine how you feel or what you think. Set your pace and space. Make intentional time for silence and solitude. It can save you from feeling like you’re dying inside.
Escape the world to return to reality.
Jadner Lugo's Blog 