Loneliness is a universal experience known to every human being
on earth. Everyone is potentially susceptible to loneliness,
including the rich and famous. Judy Garland once said, "If I'm
such a legend, then why am I so lonely? Let me tell you, being a
legend is all very well if you've got somebody around who loves
you." Many of us are probably lonely but are reluctant to admit
it. We may feel ashamed and stigmatized by our loneliness and
see it as a sign that we are unlovable or defective instead of
recognizing it as an essential part of the human condition.
James Park, an existential philosopher, asks, "Is there a person
who has never known the eerie distance of isolation and
separation, who has never suffered the pain of rejection or the
loss of love?" Park eloquently goes on to say, "Loneliness is an
aching void in the center of our being, a deep longing to love
and to be loved, to be fully known and accepted by at least one
other person." Experts say there are several different kinds of
loneliness. - Emo