a year of silence

2/6/14

  "You think to much."
  "He was quiet and kept to himself."
  "Silence is a waste."

  The first two quotes have almost become cliche's. The third is from a doctor when she misread a tattoo i have (it actually says, "silence is wisdom" in Latin). She felt her misinterpretation was a more accurate assessment on the nature of silence.
  Silence is generally held in contempt by a large segment of society. If you are quiet in a group setting, you are boring. If you're quiet by nature, you are weird and regarded with suspicion. All truly fun things seem to involve a lot of boisterous noise. All the more mundane things in life appear to involve quiet thought.
  Why is quiet reflection so vilified in our modern world? Is slowing down to pause for a moment and actually think, such a terrible thing? Being quiet doesn't lead to serial killing. Desensitization to violence, a stunted sense of empathy and a bizarre desire for recognition, are far more likely steps to the mental imbalance that would lead someone to kill. Is talking about the activities of a popular celebrity over blaring music at a party, more interesting than a group discussion about the art of acting in a quiet park (if you can find one)? Maybe it is.....Maybe "blowing off steam" by being as loud as possible is healthy and fun......
  Making "noise" can be a necessary and desirable thing. Speaking up at a town meeting over an important issue, laughing out loud, and playing the piano at a concert, are just a few instances where sound can be truly great. But sound and noise can be two very different things. Deciding which is which can be a matter of opinion and open to debate.
  In my experience, a lot of people prefer noise, any noise, over silence.