THE MUSIC OF SILENCE.
Dear Friends:
Music is comprised of notes or chords, interdispersed with periods of silence. The silence is an integral part of the music -- it provides for resonance and reflection on the passage previously played, while it creates anticipation of the next musical passage to come. Silence, in speech, is many different things:
It is punctuation, signifying the end of a thought or phrase --
It is an indication of thoughtful consideration of what the other conversational participant has just said --
It is an unspoken request for further clarification or explanation --
It is a deliberate de-pressurizing strategy when an argument is brewing --
It is a show of respect for the other person, and an encouragement for the other person to continue with his or her thoughts --
It is an indication of indignation or anger --
It is an indication of fascination, worshipfulness or respect --
It is occasionally a symptom of narcolepsy.
In our speech, we are constantly making music, as with our body language, we are constantly engaged in a dance. These are elaborate and very beautiful forms of communication that are not as well understood as they truly should be. Perhaps the first step toward understanding these forms of language, is to observe them, using all of our senses, and exercising great patience. Silence can mean as much as words. Listening to silence is crucially important. You must be silent to hear silence (ironically), and there are times when it is necessary to ask, "What are you thinking?" How often do we fill the void of somebody else's silence with our idle or nervous chatter, completely missing the opportunity to respect that person's silent reflection?
I watched an elderly couple (seated on a bench at a shopping mall) sitting still and holding hands in silence for several long minutes. I do not know precisely what they were saying, but I am certain, by the expressions on their faces, that they were communicating at a very deep level. And with all that I have to say so much of the time, in a torrent of words with so little substance, I found myself envious of what they shared between them. The music of silence that bound them to eachother.
Faithfully,
Douglas Castle
Dear Friends:
Music is comprised of notes or chords, interdispersed with periods of silence. The silence is an integral part of the music -- it provides for resonance and reflection on the passage previously played, while it creates anticipation of the next musical passage to come. Silence, in speech, is many different things:
It is punctuation, signifying the end of a thought or phrase --
It is an indication of thoughtful consideration of what the other conversational participant has just said --
It is an unspoken request for further clarification or explanation --
It is a deliberate de-pressurizing strategy when an argument is brewing --
It is a show of respect for the other person, and an encouragement for the other person to continue with his or her thoughts --
It is an indication of indignation or anger --
It is an indication of fascination, worshipfulness or respect --
It is occasionally a symptom of narcolepsy.
In our speech, we are constantly making music, as with our body language, we are constantly engaged in a dance. These are elaborate and very beautiful forms of communication that are not as well understood as they truly should be. Perhaps the first step toward understanding these forms of language, is to observe them, using all of our senses, and exercising great patience. Silence can mean as much as words. Listening to silence is crucially important. You must be silent to hear silence (ironically), and there are times when it is necessary to ask, "What are you thinking?" How often do we fill the void of somebody else's silence with our idle or nervous chatter, completely missing the opportunity to respect that person's silent reflection?
I watched an elderly couple (seated on a bench at a shopping mall) sitting still and holding hands in silence for several long minutes. I do not know precisely what they were saying, but I am certain, by the expressions on their faces, that they were communicating at a very deep level. And with all that I have to say so much of the time, in a torrent of words with so little substance, I found myself envious of what they shared between them. The music of silence that bound them to eachother.
Faithfully,
Douglas Castle
>The image above appears courtesy of artist and sculptor Suzzanne Fokine.
>This post is dedicated to acknowledging the ongoing suffering of those unwitting experimental subjects in both the U.S. military and universities who endured unspeakable horrors during clandestine government-sponsored psychological and psychotropic drug-testing during the Vietnam War era. Their cries echo in the night.
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