birch trees winter in andalia by emilio sanchez perrier

The Silence
By Jennifer Kiley
11.10.12 #11

the silence
is there sound
in the silence
if it cannot be heard
is there ever
perfect silence

when you
meditate
does your mind
attempt
to attain silence
or lack
of connection
with the here
and now
does
meditation’s goal
want to
remove you
from
all
the senses

if you
are removed
do you
feel nothing
do you
experience silence
can you
understand
wanting
some silence
the sound
of nobody
talking
no tv
on
no music
playing
even though
music
may be
moving
spiritually

the unending
sound
drives out
the quiet
in the mind
the space
for deeper
thoughts
and reflecting
you can’t get
there
in the
noise

i can go
a day
in silence
with
only writing
as my means
of concentration
the thoughts
are turned on
the mind
is picking up
the frequency
for ideas
to bloom
that’s when
they most
often visit
you openly

they aren’t
blocked out
by the noise
of sound
no matter
how good
it sounds
if you
are tripping
to its
mellowness.
on a
good joint
of weed
it might be
a pleasant
diversion

i feel
the need
to concentrate
rather than
surrendering to
those diversions
that fog
the mind
when ideas
are flowing
their freedom is
the most
significant part
of one’s day
or night
or any time
when
creativity
flows

listening
to music
and
actually
concentrating
on its sound
and lyrics
if there
are some
it’s good
to follow them
to find
their
meaning

does silence
hold meaning
or is it
meaningless
and
just is

do all
things real
or imagined
have to have
meaning
to exist

what is
meaning
what exactly
are at
the roots
of meaning

does
meaning
need
to have
meaning

do humans
need
meaning
to live
or
to
survive
would
we die out
without
meaning

is that what
makes
us feel
so special
that we have
meaning

can there be
total silence
can we live
without meaning
can we exist
without sound
how would we
communicate

the silence
the most
difficult part
of our being
that we are able
to achieve

is silence
an achievement
do we strive
for it
as a
meaningful act
of existence

is it essential
to maintain sanity
not go mad
to have
long moments
of silence

some people
cannot handle
the silence
without
breaking down
they just have
a strong urge
to fill
something that
feels empty

i must say
i enjoy silence
even if i am
not intentionally
seeking it out
it just
usually happens
i do nothing
to change
the silence
into sound
of any kind
i enjoy
or accept
those moments
as contributing
to my ability
to think deeply
there is
the absence
of the distraction
of noise

total silence
allows thoughts
or feelings
that are shy
come out
of the dark
into the light
they become free
and stretch
their imagination
unhindered
by the disruption
of noise

sometimes
the sound
of voices
speaking
or singing
or communicating
in some fashion
that is
as important
as tripping
in
your mind
to
open
to
the
peaceful
serenity
of
divine
energy
as it
enters
ones
entity

© Jennifer Kiley 2012

black leopard sleeping by ami211 on flickr

the sound of silence-simon and garfunkel