Meandering in Silence

Christina C. Franklin | Grace Gao

Have you ever listened to silence? We all know someone who says, “I have to have noise! If it’s too quiet, it drives me crazy.” Or perhaps it is you who feels this way. But have you ever truly listened to silence?

If you have, you know it’s not quiet at all.

Have you ever heard snow fall in a forest? If not, you should. I recently found myself walking on the edge of the woods enjoying the silence. It was a chilly winter day, gray and quiet. Disagreeable to some. I calmly meandered with no destination or plan. A bird flew by, hushed, save for the swoosh of his wings, my only clue. And then I heard it — silence. The quiet symphony of the woods. A tapping of gentle snow played on the bed of fallen leaves that formed the base of the thicket and trees. The quiet rhythm of the snow akin to waves lapping on the shoreline of a beach. The silence was calming and beautiful, a lullaby of nature. I stood not wanting to move, my nose numb from the cold, but I was not.

I was meandering in silence.