Tuesday, November 5, 2019

The Lost Art of Silence

I like music.  I don’t particularly like to talk, but I will.  I enjoy watching movies and sometimes TV shows.  I like listening to audiobooks.

But yet, I spend parts of my day every day in silence.  Sometimes, I’m meditating but because I’m using a guided app, it is not quiet for the whole session.

Usually I spend my quiet time driving in the car, with no radio, no tunes - there is absolutely nothing on.   When I swim, I’m in silence.  When I work at my small business, most days I prefer quiet over lots of talking or a TV or radio blaring in the corner.

I am not one of those marketing statistic shoppers who buys more when I’m shopping because music is blaring on the speakers overheard.  Nope, I actually leave the store!  It goes without saying, I prefer to shop online because unless I’m playing a song on my computer, it’s silent.

Most people, though, cannot stand the silence especially if they are in a group of people.  Sure, that is a time to socialize or network, but every second doesn’t have to be filled with saying something, anything, or whatever comes to mind.

Today, during my silent time, I’ve thought about many things I need to get done to do with organization and things I need to take care of, and I have had several writing ideas for my poems and stories.  Would this have happened had I been blaring tunes in my ear or watching Netflix in the time I’ve had to not have “noise” in my head?

Sometimes it’s hard to be in your own head, or alone with your own thoughts.  If you are experiencing grief or other troubles, yes maybe then you do need a non-silent distraction, but you still need that silent time to figure out how to move on, get going again, or to keep trying.

Next time you have a few minutes while waiting on your kids to finish an activity, or while waiting in line, use that time to be silent and think ... don’t play on your cell phone, read, etc.  You may be surprised at what you figure out when you are quiet in your own head.

Silence is a lost art.  One I feel that needs to be practiced again.

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