Silence is an intriguing concept. Only silence enables us to hear. But silence is a very noisy thing. When we finally start to listen to our own garbled selves, as well as to others, we discover how full of static our hearts and minds really are. Silence, the time of coming to inner quiet, is the only chance we have of coming to inner quiet, is the only chance we have of coming to serenity.
I grew up in this forest and I knew
These giant trees when they were nothing more than
Than slender saplings swaying in the wind;
Sought solitude, delighted in the lore
Of nature, who became my teacher first;
Walked down trails where sun and shadow meet,
Through silence softly tucked about the days;
Traced the twists and turns of every creek.
Stepping lightly through the after-glow,
Amid the falling flakes of silver white,
Belonging to the moment and the mood,
Another little creature of the night,
With quickened breath, ears attuned, who stood
... Sensing God within this winter wood!