A friend of mine sent this devotion from Henry Nouwen to me recently. She sent it to encourage me in my search to find deep and meaningful relationships in St. Louis. Enjoy.

'Creating Space to Dance Together' by Henry Nouwen
When we feel lonely we keep looking for a person who can take our loneliness away. Our lonely hearts cry out, 'Please hold me, touch me, speak to me, pay attention to me.' But soon we discover that the person we expect to take our loneliness way cannot give us what we ask for. Often that person feels oppressed by our demands and runs away, leaving us in despair. As long as we approach another person from our loneliness no mature human relationship can develop. Clinging to one another in loneliness is suffocating and eventually becomes destructive. For love to be possible we need the courage to create space between us and trust that this space allows us to dance together.