“Our world no longer hears God because it is constantly speaking, at a devastating speed and volume, in order to say nothing. Modern civilization does not know how to be quiet. It holds forth in an unending monologue… Thus there is a dictatorship of speech, a dictatorship of verbal emphasis… From morning to evening, from evening to morning, silence no longer has any place at all; the noise tries to prevent God himself from speaking. In this hell of noise, man disintegrates and is lost; he is broken up into countless worries, fantasies, and fears. In order to get out of these depressing tunnels, he desperately awaits noise so that it will bring him a few consolations. Noise is a deceptive, addictive, and false tranquilizer. The tragedy of our world is never better summed up than in the fury of senseless noise that stubbornly hates silence. This age detests the things that silence brings us to: encounter, wonder, and kneeling before God… Contemplative silence is a fragile little flame in the middle of a raging ocean. The fire of silence is weak because it is bothersome to a busy world.”
― Cardinal Robert Sarah, The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise
Golden fall leaves and barnacle-covered rocks crunch under my feet. Waves crash gently against the shore. Warm sunshine peeks out sporadically from behind the clouds. A cool breeze blows pieces of hair across my face. Hot coffee warms my hands and my belly. I take in all these sensations while walking down the beach, munching on my favorite cookie. My eyes search the surface of the water for fins, humps, and noses of sea creatures.
The beach is one of my favorite places to walk in the quiet of nature and think. I let my mind wander and drift to whatever captures my attention, grateful for the silence of this place.
It is not a silence devoid of sound, but a silence devoid of noise.
I continue walking, taking it all in: seagrass growing out of the rain run-off stream, ravens gliding in the air currents, a rain storm moving closer in the distance, the sharpness of the rocks through my barefoot shoes.
Looking down at the ground, I feel a sudden gratitude for the barefoot shoes which allow me to feel the texture and unevenness of the ground. I think back to my college classes and remember how the nervous system provides the brain with the information it needs to make decisions. The thicker our shoes, the more we deprive our senses of the information our feet provide of the ground on which we walk.
How often do I deprive myself of vital information by numbing my mind and senses? Am I enjoying the gifts of this world or allowing music, business, alcohol, food, or anything else to keep me from feeling and responding to the world in which I live?
I don’t want to live a life that is numb to anything.
I want to live a life firmly rooted in reality, barefoot, allowing the joys, sorrows, sharp rocks, and cool waters to flow through my senses.
I desire to run in the cold rain, feeling my skin tingle as the hard, wet rain drops hit my face. Those feelings tell me I am alive.
I choose to allow the emotion of a hard day or a failed relationship to wash over my mind and soul and to let out a deep sigh and tears of sadness. Those emotions tell me I have a heart.
I allow the pain, disappointment, and chaos of this world to remind me that I am not of this place. I am called to an eternity in Heaven.
But I also desire to hang my feet off the side of my sailboat, feeling the heat of the sun soak deep into my bones, hearing the waves and the laughter of my friends and family. Those feelings tell me life is good.
I choose to allow the emotion of seeing my best friend’s first child to wash over my entire being, to let out a sigh and tears of joy and contentment. Those emotions tell me my heart is capable of more love than I ever expected.
I allow the kindness, mercy, and joy of this world to remind me that the Lord did not leave us here alone. He did not leave us devoid of goodness.
He has given us a temporary home for the journey, where we can choose how to live this wonderful life. We can open our awareness and see how the reality of the ugly highlights the beauty of the good and revel in the contrast of dark and light. Because without the dark, there is no light.
I will walk through this world with eyes wide open and feet on the ground. Each day I will work to let go of the noise and let the realities of this world sink in, to wonder at all that is good and mourn all that is not, and to encounter the love and beauty of those around me. I will trust in the Lord, fully confident that the battle has already been won.
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You are spot on. Daily we are bombarded with constant stimulation. Monitors flashing programs at the fitness center. A television blaring at the dentists office above the patient’s chair and in the lobby, video advertisements on the fuel pump at the gas station, addictive algorithms in social networking applications. Video gaming that distorts dopamine levels in our bodies. Etc (Who decided that constant stimulation was desired or good for our wellbeing?) Constant stimulations are distractions that take us away from deliberate relationships and observations of the reality in which we live. Many times it is in contemplative silence that we hear the Holy Spirit speak to us. And the recognition of objective truth creates introspection that in turn fosters accountability, integrity and character. It is through the contemplative silence that we become the best versions of ourselves. Thank you for the reflection.