Silence

I love music. I love it so much that most of my life I could not be in my home without music playing: classical when studying, Michael Jackson when cleaning, rock n’ roll blues when exercising, Grateful Dead when getting ready to go out, reggae for late night hang outs, funk and soul when having a dinner party… you name the activity, I knew what to play.

When I moved in with my husband, I noticed that he had a different relationship with music. Although he also enjoyed listening to it and getting down at live shows, he did not find it necessary to always have a soundtrack playing to his life. I would wake up after him on the weekends (per usual) and find him doing work around the house in complete silence; I would sometimes be in the car with him and he would insist on turning off the radio every once in a while and drive with no music. I didn’t get it. I actually found it pretty boring. So I told him just that, and he told me silence is beautiful too. There is music in silence. In silence, one can genuinely tap into his thoughts without disruption. Silence allows you to be present. And hearing the birds outside, the ambulance drive by, the gardeners trimming the bushes, the kids swimming in the pool, the dogs barking... is also beautiful as it connects you with the moment.

There is a saying in Farsi, "Haerfeh dorost javab nadareh." The literal translation is Correct statements do not have a response. Which is what happened after my husband's explanation. So I gave it a shot and he was (unsurprisingly) correct.

Not long after my newfound appreciation for silence, I read a moving paragraph in Jewel's new memoir, Never Broken. It eloquently describes her relationship to silence as an artist. For those not familiar with her, she is the definition of a true poet. Her lyrics, her life experiences, her music—she is a gifted warrior. Without going on too much about my love and admiration for her, here is the passage:

I cannot overstate the importance of silence to young artists, or to anyone seeking a creative voice. It takes great influences to find your way to unique self-expression. You must stand on the shoulders of artists who have gone before you. Read great works. See great arts. Listen to great voices. This sets a bar for your spirit and psyche to work toward. Then you must dive inward into silence. Stand on the rippling edges of the expansive universe within your own being and create from there.  Don’t compare yourself with what’s popular. Doing so is like one child comparing himself with another. Greatness is never achieved by trying to imitate the greatness of another. Greatness is chipping away at all that does not belong to you and then expressing yourself so truly that others can’t help but recognize it. It is in silence that we discover ourselves. The silence and the unknown can be frightening, but with time it stops feeling like there is nothing there. The darkness and silence will begin to feel like a void in a positive sense—the womb of creation. It is the magical nothing that something is birthed from. Feed yourself a diet of great work, and then go away by yourself and listen alone to your soul speak to you. Silence will be your greatest teacher.

Read it again.

Silence is awesome. 

Sincerely,

Sahra