Practicing Silence

Today I practiced silence. Blissful, peaceful, perfect silence.

I drove in silence. I exercised in silence. I cooked in a quiet, empty SILENT house.

And as I hummed along my day, a sort of peace emerged. My thoughts ran clear. Time passed with a sense of ease and perfection. I felt in flow, in harmony.

“Noise is a distraction. It clogs, distorts, disconnects; it occupies.”

I’m a noisy person. I speak so you can hear me. I laugh with all my might. I only listen music on one level and one level alone: loud. I’m rambunctious and I like it. But, [there’s always a but] I can’t always be noisy.

When we’re diverted by noise our soul doesn’t get the T.L.C. it deserves. We don’t reflect. We can’t meditate. It’s tough to give deep consideration to yourself when you’re flipping between apps, channels, conversations, and more.

I say, create deliberate periods of silence and solitude. Carve out space and time and allow your mind to do its magic.

Like a cat who will only come to you on her terms, your epiphanies are the same. You need to set the stage for the great ah-ha moment. Let it come to you.

This moments of silence and solitude will give you clarity, peace, actualization, and more. Like unraveling an onion, you have many (many!!) layers but in the day to day hustle, we’re almost always looking at the surface.

The art of clearing your mind is far more simple than widely perceived. It can be a matter of keeping your hands busy with knitting, cooking, or cleaning. It could be reconnecting with nature on a walk, run, or bike ride.

Whatever you do, do it alone and in silence. And, do something you know how to do {unconscious competence}so that your mind can do its thing.

Today I remembered how much I loved cooking. Simply cutting vegetables and making soup I heard myself say, “Wow, I really love this.” This confirmation + moment of actualization allows me to steer my decisions in the future to allow more time for the things I love, the things that make me feel really good. Like cooking.

Knowing yourself is the sweetest, most precious gift there is. Go then, and know thyself.