The beauty of silence

Have you ever walked into a half empty office at 8:15 in the morning and cherished the silence? How often have you had the whole house to yourself? As I type, I'm all alone at home, having just sent my toddler out for a stroll with my parents. I have the whole house to myself and it has been so long since this happened that I just do not know what to do. I am draped by an all pervading silence. I look out from my balcony and the sky is a deadly dark with rain clouds on the horizon. I sip my tea and wait for Malkhiel, the angel of inspiration, to help me clear my thoughts.  Each night as I put my toddler to bed, after half an hour of wrestling and off key lullabies,  a beautiful soft silence envelopes us; it is just him, me and the whirring of the fan above us. At moments like these, I want time to stand still. I read somewhere that only those who are most comfortable with each other can sit together without speaking. Have you ever held hands with a loved one and walked for miles without exchanging a single word? There is something magical about silence - it spoils us, it provides the much needed blank sheet of paper to collect our thoughts and most of all it makes us realise the beauty of everyday life.  Silence does have a lot to tell; we just have to listen real hard. 

I have a nomad in me
I see the world through her eyes
I drape myself in the winds of change
I travel and I sit still
I look around, up and straight
I am a wandering soul
I am the sea

She felt mysterious
She was still a puzzle
To many
To all
Except herself
All ribboned up
Sitting pretty in a corner
An unopened present, she was
Like life.....

From a book I'm currently reading (I know just what you mean)

'We talk, therefore we are friends'

I wish I were a butterfly, elusive
I wish I were the earth, motley
I wish I were the sky, expansive
I wish I were a present, waiting to be opened
I wish I were wanderer, freedom

'Contentment is the key word'

It has a cosy sound to it, doesn't it?'

A friend told me sometime back - You don't allow yourself to experience it. So, don't go around, blaming the world for it. The truth of the statement hit me hard. The 'IT', I am assuming, can be synomymous with any positive emotion, ranging from 'Happiness' to 'Love'. A silent reflection of the 'Whys and the Whats' of the statement made me conclude that the reason is quite simple. I don't LIVE for NOW. I don't live in the present moment. Here's a poem that has been doing the rounds on the internet that beautifully captures the essence of NOW:)

Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.

Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask "How are you?"
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?
You'd better slow down
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.

Ever told your child,
We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time
To call and say "Hi"?
You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift....
Thrown away.
Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over

I'm moving, finally :)

Don't dance so fast
The music might not last.