The Sound of Silence

'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt. ~ Abraham Lincoln

Core asset... May I always know when to be silent :)

On Saturday, I observed a day of silence which was another assignment. I have had silent days in the past and I normally would stay home and be in the silence, but this was different. Recently, I received an email from Sol Yoga, in White Rock, about a silent retreat they were having. Shortly after that I received my next set of assignments and noticed that one was a day of silence and journaling about it. The synchronicity helped me decide which day would become silent. Since Sol Yoga is in White Rock, and so are my naturopaths, I decided to combine a trip and made an appointment. I let them know I would not be speaking that day and was curious how it would go. I wanted to get biofeedback to listen to my body anyway, so what better way but in silence.

I must say, driving from Port Moody to White Rock (about a 45 minute drive), was the first test of my ability to be silent. Words found a way of escaping out of my mouth a couple times. When someone did not move at a green light until it was almost yellow (even after honking my horn) and when my blinker indicating I was merging, with the rest of my lane into the one lane through the construction zone on Lougheed Highway, was not quite enough to show my intent. How easily "come on" and "are you letting me in?" tumbled out of my mouth before I could catch them. Funnier still was that they were barely above a whisper, but not the silence I had intended on.

 My next "slip of the tongue" was while walking the path down Crescent Beach towards the yoga center. A little boy was walking behind his parents coming towards me and he and I smiled at one another. He said something as he passed me, to which I turned to wave at him and he waved back and said, "Bye!" An automatic "bye" was my response. Then I giggled silently realizing how quick my tongue can be and how reactive speaking can be.
I had gone to the naturopaths before this and spent the hours there nodding and writing anything that needed to be communicated. It felt awkward to have them speak and not reply, but I was able to stay silent besides the odd giggle. I even went to a restaurant/cafe for lunch and ordered by writing in my notebook. Somehow writing Tuna on salad, as they had in their menu, got me a tuna sandwich, but I didn't speak when it arrived at the table... mostly because I was in shock (lol) and I had to eat and get to the studio.

The silent retreat was 3 hours of yoga, pranayama, meditation and a walking meditation out to the beach and back. How divine. Though there was still sound from the street and beach outside and a singing bowl, my mind and body found some much appreciated silence. Thanks Marita :)

On the way home, I stopped to buy some groceries and a trip to the deli counter had me mouthing the words "I can't talk" to the girl behind the counter. As she helped me, she also became silent and mouthed "you're welcome" to my "thank you." This reminded me of the walking meditation and something Marita said afterwards... "Did you notice how others became more silent as well?" Very interesting to see that happen.

Today, I am still contemplating silence. In my silence, I noticed each sound become more alive. I also noticed just how noisy thoughts can be and the outside world as well. There is so much within silence. All sound comes from silence. The silence between is what makes all things... such as music, words, thoughts. Just as space and emptiness create everything. I'm intrigued to work with silence more. To see what it brings in life and in sessions. Space for what is and more. Silence really is "golden"... precious, rare and worth its weight. Lol and also sometimes loud.