Loners

The man who separates himself seeks self-gratification; he bares his teeth against sound judgment (Proverbs 18:1)

Idaho is famous for its loners: Free Press Francis, Buckskin Billy, Cougar Dave, Dugout Dick to name a few—all mavericks who chose to separate from the crowd. I've read their diaries and talked to people who knew them. In almost every instance these men and women became, well...wacky.

Loners can turn into unbalanced people, a principle underscored by the proverb above. (You'll note that there is no conjunction between the couplets, a grammatical nuance that connects antisocial withdrawal with irrational behavior.)

A proverb is not an absolute; it's a general rule, and there can be exceptions to the rule. Some loners are as sane as one can be in this world. But in general, those who seek to gratify themselves and save their souls through isolation will lose them in the end. It’s an application of the time-tested axiom: he who would save his life will lose it. 

I've always gravitated toward a solitary lifestyle; it's in my genes. I'd be happy to have a permanent job in a fire lookout tower or an offshore lighthouse, and that inclination has become more attractive as I’ve aged. People wear me out. It’s too easy for me to withdraw from the world and it's troubles.

But I know what isolation would do to my soul; it would wither away. I need someone apart from me to give myself to. Without the daily grind and rub of sinners and saints God cannot make the most of me. I would never learn to love. 

David Roper

7.1.18