The Sound of Silence

Here is a question for you dear readers, "Is the pursuit of happiness synonymous with the pursuit of pleasure?"  And in seeking these moments of happiness, how comfortable are you with moments of solitude, are you afraid of the silence?  Do you go out of your way to seek moments of solitude?

I know, that's quite a mouthful of questions right there, I didn't ask just one!  What got me reflecting on this you might wonder? I'm currently lost in reading Listening Below the Noise by Anne D. LeClaire, she wrote about how she stumbled upon what has become a sacred practice of hers, being silent.  That is being quite, away from her family, any electronic devices, radio or television and especially the telephone, for a day.  In this silence she learned to listen to her inner self; she was able to write, and accomplish so much because of the clarity in her thinking, she found her life was so much better for it!

I can see how this would be because in my own way, the only time that I can "see" my way through the muddle in my head at times, are the quiet times when I take my shower (though there is the noise of water running) and I am able to find the solutions to anything I'm having a problem with; and that time is also my prayer moments!

Well, have you thought about it? Are the moments when you are the happiest in your life, the times when you have the most pleasure?  I do believe for a lot of people, the answer would be a resounding "Yes"!  So are you able to have quiet moments - do you seek time for your moments of silence (not just when honoring or doing it in the memory of someone (or thing)?  Can you have total silence or do you have to hear noise of some sort?  I believe that we have become so used to the noise in our environment, that we expect it and are sometimes lost without it!  We have even grown to ignore the noise of our living unless it happens to be something catastrophic!  I think that says a lot about us as humans, at least for some of us. You might not be able to fall asleep without music, or the television.

When a young child begins daycare/kindergarten, one of the things that the caregivers or teachers would do is let the children have quite times. They would take a nap, or at least learn to be quiet while those who want to sleep, can sleep for a given period.  It is unfortunate that this practice is not continued throughout the school years.  Personally, I believe this might do a world of good to those who need to harness this way of being. This is why meditation is so popular with (some) adults, because it helps us to tune out and focus inward on ourselves!  Some of us don't do this enough, me included!

Does Silence have a sound....you tell me!