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You Should Be Quiet
Shut up.
I have six siblings.“ Shut up!” or (if my mom was in hearing range) “Be quiet!” were phrases often heard in my house.
Distractions were often and silence almost never existed.
Whether or not the noises in our lives are wanted, silence is very rare. We are constantly filling every moment with noise, music, podcasts, Ted Talks, YouTube videos.
Instead of contemplating life’s questions, we just ask Google. Instead of confronting our deepest and scariest thoughts we shove them away and turn to Instagram. I mean, why should I be silent if I could be filling every moment with something more productive? There’s always something to do, why add silence to your to-do list?
Noise has become a sort of escape for us. We seek out noise so the problems of life can’t enter our minds for too long. For some of us silence is scary. Silence forces us to reflect, to face our fears.
But silence is vital to life.
“Not too long ago it was assumed that clean water’s not important, that seeing the stars is not that important. But now it is. And now I think we’re realizing quiet is important and we need silence. That silence is not a luxury, but it’s essential.”
When the noise is removed, what is left are the essentials. Through silence we find what it is we really want and who we really are. Noise keeps the canvas of your mind filled. When you allow silence to exist your mind becomes a blank canvas, one where you can paint your own future.
Studies have shown that silence literally decreases stress and grows new brain cells.
Allow silence to be part of your life. Shut up. Don’t be afraid to shut out the noise.
