Jan29

listen carefully.

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“have you ever heard the wonderful silence just before the dawn? or the quiet and calm just as a storm ends? or perhaps you know the silence when you haven’t the answer to a question you’ve been asked, or the hush of a country road at night, or the expectant pause of a room full of people when someone is just about to speak, or, most beautiful of all, the moment after the door closes and you’re alone in the whole house? each one is different, you know, and all very beautiful if you listen carefully.”

-norton  juster, the phantom tollbooth 

 

 

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huron river, ann arbor, mi, usa – january 2022

74 responses »

  2. I often think that there is no real silence. Walking my dog in the countryside, I hear birds in the trees, the rustling of leaves. or a breeze moving tall grass. Alone at home there are those sounds that a house makes. Clicks from places unknown, water moving through pipes, refrigerators humming as they work to reach the set temperature.
    I think total silence would be quite scary.
    Best wishes, Pete.

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  9. I watched a friend lose her hearing, one ear at a time (hard of hearing in both, but one quit completely and the other one ‘hung on’ for almost another whole year). I have watched her navigate life as a deaf person and when my neighbors, at least one of which is always noisy except from maybe midnight to 6 AM, get on my nerves, I remind myself that Ellen would be so glad to hear something – anything – that she’d find joy in those sounds. I do love silence, however…

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  11. I have the ability (not sure it really is one) to surround myself with silence when a group of women get together and babble. I am able to nod my head and make the appropriate “hmm’s” and “oh really’s?” and not hear a word.
    Usually a group of talkative retired teachers. 🙂

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  28. I love the silence of the morning – – the rest of the family is asleep, a cup of hot tea on the side table long forgotten, sitting in my comfortable, green armchair, hugged by the sound of peace, in the presence of divinity, feeling humble and calm.

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