S is for Silence

I was torn today on the topic of my post, and then “Silence is golden” rushed into my mind this morning, a topic pertinent to my life for many years because I’ve lost the ability to experience complete silence. Tinnitus, perhaps the topic for Monday’s blog post, invades and disturbs 24/7.

Beyond personal disturbances, there is the fact that, like the invasion of man-made light upon the sky, human contrived noise has almost silenced silence. Where does one go to find the quiet of silence, a place where the loudest noise is one’s thoughts?

With the increase in communication devices – think ipod, ipad, iphone, inoise – humans seem hooked to noise all day long, every day of the year. When not wired to some music or phone device, we’re bombarded by the sounds of motor vehicles, planes, dogs, people talking as if to themselves (thanks to Bluetooth), office chatter and televisions, that seem to be on constantly as background in some homes.

I suspect we’ve grown so comfortable with noise that silence sounds deafening. And, again I ask, where does one go to find the quiet of silence? The answer: Orfield Laboratory’s anechoic chamber in Minneapolis, Minnesota is considered the quietest place on Earth. It is so soundproof, that no human has been able to withstand the absolute silence, when the room is darkened, for more than forty-five minutes.

Scientists say this reflects that we are sensory-dependent beings. Apparently, after a few minutes in the chamber, the sounds grow personal – heartbeat, breathing, perhaps your skin twitching?  People have actually started hallucinating in the deprivation of sound environment.

Another place for silence is located in the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park in the state of Washington. It’s called “One Square Inch of Silence” a place designed on Earth Day 2005 to protect the natural soundscape of the park’s backcountry wilderness. You can learn more at www.onesquareinch.org

Silence - a beautiful sound. Silence makes music more vibrant and alive. Silence allows the mind a respite from conscious activity, wakens deeper layers of self where true peace and clarity reside.

*** ***

soundless

silence

begins where noise

ends, a wisp of sweet air

strikes between echoes, the absence

startles