Morning Reflection: Learning to live in silence

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Learning to live in silence.

We live in a world of distractions. Through technology we have miniaturized the mechanisms of media, creating a constant cacophony of devious distractions that threaten to insulate us in our own solitary of sound and sequences.

Isolated and individual, we have made for ourselves a world entirely of our own desires, yet we are dependent upon a never ending source of input to balance the screaming that we hear from deep inside the maelstrom of our minds.

For we do not take time to rest in silence.

When was the last time that you sat in the silence of your mind, listening to the deepest desires of your soul? For most people, it’s so long ago that they cannot remember what the voice of their intuition sounds like, nor are they aware of the wants and needs of their heart. They go from day to day, distracted, avoidant and determinedly unaware.

Because the voices they hear within are discordant, disorganized and distressing.

We don’t take the time anymore to really ponder, and think slowly and clearly about our problems, our desires and our destinies. In the midst of the ever increasing pace of life, we have grown accustomed to seeking that which others have told us will make us happy, without ever deciding to find out what really works for ourselves.

In our rush to be ‘enough’ we have forgotten how to be ourselves, which is where silence comes in.

In the quiet moments, and especially in moments of meditation, we can begin to uncover and integrate the many parts of our fractured souls that are desperately desiring a return to the whole. 

Yet for many, the silence is uncomfortable, and even painful, as the many wounds that we have sought to suppress are brought to the surface in a painful and disheartening symphony of suffering.

And so we avoid through distraction, hoping to forever outrun the darkness deep in our souls.

But it doesn’t work, it never does. No matter how far or how fast you run, eventually you are going to have to do what you were always going to have to do. Someway, somehow, you have to learn to live in silence with yourself, being able to calm the troubles of your soul, encompassing them with understanding, kindness, forgiveness and peace.

It’s never easy, but without learning to live with yourself, you’ll never become the person you could really be.

So today I challenge you to take a few minutes out of your day, and experience nothing external, and everything internal. Try to silence your mind, and listen to the thoughts and feelings you cannot suppress nor avoid. 

For those are the signposts of your soul, directing you onwards to the peace that could be yours, if only you will do the work to calm your spirit and embrace your soul.

Peace is waiting for you in the silence. Will you join it?

— Dr. Alan Barnes
@maddrbmusings