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Aug 21, 2010
"Let us be silent, that we may hear the whispers of the gods." --Henry David Thoreau
In Pursuit of Silence
When all is silent, what do you hear? The first widely observed national moment of silence occurred in Britain in 1919. For two minutes, switchboard operators declined to connect telephone calls, subway cars and factory wheels ground to a halt, and ordinary citizens held their tongues. Within 10 years, the somber annual tradition had grown so popular that the BBC began to air the sound of the silence. Authors George Prochnik and Garrett Keizer unravel surprisingly poignant perspectives on silence, from the red-eyed tree frog's ability to discern vibrations to theories on why iPods are so ubiquitous. In a world of noise, silence easily slips through the cracks. Prochnik and Keizer remind us of its unassuming yet powerful presence. "When we ourselves are in silence, we are speaking the language of the soul," Prochnik remarks.
BE THE CHANGE
Throughout the day, listen to the sounds that surround you, and make an effort to spend time in silence.
