11/05/2025
“Imagining that we’re doing someone a favor by allowing them to avoid what might feel painful, is false. When we’re making the choice not to ask about a hard situation, we’re not being kind, respectful, or sensitive. In our silence, we’re requesting that the other person join us in our denial and disconnection; we’re asking them to abandon their experience, and we’re making parts of their experience welcome and other parts unwelcome. But saddest of all is that we're leaving them alone in a place where they most need our company. We’re not meaning to, but we're creating loneliness within the relationship itself.”
Loneliness is curable, and so much easier than we imagine.