Silence is Golden

I think we often re-introduce our self to ourselves, sometimes fully aware, other times gleefully ignorant of our own presence within. We don’t hear the ‘hellos’ of an inner strength; we are surprised when we remind our self with a tap on the shoulder, whispering, “You can do this!”, and too often we quickly grab the hand and invite in the part of us that breeds doubt.

I started nurturing these thoughts of ‘missed meetings with myself’ at some point in the recent past. I'm not sure when it started, or how, or under what pretense, but I realized that (overall) I’ve really enjoyed getting to know myself for the past year. Meeting and inviting in these new guests wasn’t always easy or enjoyable, and providing the right space and harmonious tension for re-introductions to occur was- at first- difficult to create and sustain.

 

Where I have found these spaces and this tension is in the silent spaces between my thoughts. We all have these silent spaces, and they are easily overlooked, ignored, and often a forgotten place to explore. What I’ve realized is that in these silent spaces between our thoughts, there are parts of our life quietly waiting to arrive. Those parts that are waiting so quietly, so patiently? When invited to arrive, to show up, to perform- they do not fail.

Silence can quickly be pushed out by other noises competing for our attention. The background noises that are normally denied our attention, suddenly see their opportunity for recognition, seize it like Cesar. Although these noises typically know their place in the background, they are well-trained to dominate the forefront when the leading noises are sent offstage. We often train silence to be a feeble understudy, labeled as useless and unnecessary in the acts that construct the plays of our lives. For me, I re-introduced myself to my inner stage mom, and silence was quickly directed as the lead for the spaces between my thoughts.

Within this casting, silence can become its own noise; deafening and reverberating like an airplane. Oddly, this silence can consume our ear space most loudly, and it can consume our ear space with such density that nothing more can get in. It acts as an innkeeper, and often doesn’t leave any rooms as vacanct. Luckily, silence can eventually simmer and actually silence itself. It can switch roles and become an embrace, a welcoming touch, a presence. The silent spaces in-between, in fact, can become the part that silences our self. The in-between spaces become small opportunities. This is where the present stops, the future stands tall, and where we are free to explore our inner “me’s.”  

Within my own silent spaces, I encountered tangled webs; seemingly endless free falls; and cold, unforgiving rock hard bottoms. In a space of silence without borders, boundaries, or bylaws, it can be easy to get lost. Getting lost within yourself when you are your own guide is one of the most terrifying types of lost that exists. When you finally coordinate where you are, it can be easy to deny an embrace from the silence between your thoughts; it can be easy to run from it; it can be easy to get scared, to panic, to sit in an emotional state of harm rather than helpfulness.

For me, these spaces of silence are a vacuum void of color, saturated by a deafening black. When there isn’t any light being shed on anything, though, everything becomes a possibility. This, in fact, may be the beauty of a complete, silent darkness- a space of endless possibilities.

So that little silent space between thoughts- so tiny, yet so encompassing of endless possibilities, that small vacuum that we so often and so easily overlook- I encourage everyone to embrace it. The silence offers a sweetness that goes unparalleled and unrivaled by other aspects of life. Once discovered, it cannot be savored enough.