Is Silence Truly Golden?
“Will you kids quit running and screaming? Can’t I have just five minutes of silence?”
“Please, kids, turn down that loud music and give me five minutes of silence.”
“Honey, will you please turn off that TV for just five minutes of silence?”
A widow knows a lot about silence. Now it echoes through the house with the vibrations of a bass drum. Some women tell me it occurs after the kids are put to bed, or the teens are safe behind their closed doors, and they can finally go to their room. My kids were already gone from home so my silence awareness started the minute I opened my back door after working all day.. It’s the thunderous silence that reigns. Absolute, utter silence.
I found silence even has sounds. Sometimes I heard a distant, faint sound of drums. Sometimes silence hummed, like a long forgotten tune. Sometimes I heard my pulse in my ears beating with tribal resonance. I finally got my silence. And five minutes was more than enough.
I hate silence. But TV chatter is worse, people talking or singing or screaming. I don’t need that. That isn’t personal. They aren’t talking or singing, or even screaming to me.
Silence is empty. There’s nothing there, not you, not me. I wander through the rooms of our house listening for you, but you don’t speak.
I remember when silences were full. You were at work at the Wool and Mohair Feed Store, or you were watering the yard, or you were fixing pancakes for breakfast while I graded papers. Sometimes you were at the ranch shearing mohair goats or counting the new calves this spring. Yes, I had silence in our home, but it was a silence full of promise. You would return. You would share what you had been doing. You would listen to my day. You might go into your office and do paperwork, but the silence would be broken. Its promise had been fulfilled. More life was to come.
I hate empty silence. Full silence is different because it is full of promise. Do you greet silence as a friend or a foe?
If the Lord had not helped me, I would have gone quickly to the land of silence.”
Psalm 94:17 GNT
So I am not the only one able to hear the sound of my heart beating in the silence. I have not told anyone that. Such a strange thing. I get everything you talked about in this post thank you for sharing your heart.
I’m so glad you understand. Sometimes I felt like I was alone in my new world.
Wow, I really needed that. Thanks for your honest sharing. You are going to touch many hearts:-)
Love your definitions of the two kinds of silence. The reference to the Bible verses are so helpful and beautiful ; )