As annoying and distracting and even maddening as people can be, we need each other for help, for strength, for companionship. Instinctively we seem to have some inkling of that. Read the paper each week and see the list of support groups that meet regularly around the area. Drive by certain parking lots on weekend nights and witness the youthful congregations. Visit a park shelter on a summer evening and notice the groups throwing frisbees and grilling burgers.
People seek each other out.
But apparently less so than before. Bowling alleys, according to one recent study, are as busy as ever, but not with leagues. People are bowling alone. Parent-Teacher organizations struggle to attract either, and fellowship events at the church draw marginal crowds. We are busier, more fatigued, and therefore more protective and selective than were our forebears, and as a result we are less and less connected.