{"id":1961,"date":"2019-08-28T20:15:02","date_gmt":"2019-08-28T20:15:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.scu.edu\/writeherewritenow\/?p=1961"},"modified":"2019-08-28T20:15:03","modified_gmt":"2019-08-28T20:15:03","slug":"sounds-and-silence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.scu.edu\/writeherewritenow\/2019\/08\/28\/sounds-and-silence\/","title":{"rendered":"Sounds and Silence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Recently, when I had bronchitis and lost my voice for a week, I became more aware of the conversational patterns that fill our lives along with the deep power of silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Americans are generally uncomfortable with silence, providing small talk as verbal \u201cfiller.\u201d When I was waiting for a transaction in a bank, the clerk apparently wanted to be polite, so he repeatedly asked me questions about my job, my books, and my writing career, although I could hardly talk above a whisper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Talking without listening is rampant in our busy, noisy culture. At business meetings, people often don\u2019t listen because they\u2019re busy rehearsing what they\u2019re going to say. Then their responses are disjointed, illogical, even inappropriate. Real communication requires both listening and speaking, but some people don\u2019t realize this. Last year, when faculty members told a school administrator that he needed to communicate better, he responded by scheduling more faculty meetings filled with his top-down lectures and announcements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carl Rogers\u2019 major contribution to psychotherapy was his emphasis on \u201cactive listening,\u201d mirroring back what people said to let them know they\u2019d been heard. An empathic, active listener offers a warm, respectful space where people can express their deepest needs. The power of listening creates bridges of understanding, healing individuals, relationships, and communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learned a lot from my week of silence. Now I watch myself, wondering how often I use meaningless filler or talk without listening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Silence can be powerful. Gandhi kept a day of silence each week. On Mondays, no matter what was happening, he went about his day without talking, writing notes to people when necessary. He said he needed the strength gained from silence to carry on his nonviolent campaign to liberate India. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calling us back to ourselves, silence can liberate us from routine, revealing greater wisdom and insight. Many artists and writers spend hours in silence and solitude. My Jesuit colleagues at Santa Clara University make 30-day silent retreats for discernment and renewal of their vocations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How about you? This week, take time to listen to the patterns of sounds and\nsilence within and around you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n