The Sound of Silence

Hello, darkness, my old friend

I’ve come to talk with you again

Because a vision softly creeping

Left its seeds while I was sleeping

And the vision that was planted in my brain

Still remains

Within the sound of silence

Paul Simon wrote the words to this song while sitting alone in a darkened room.  He was at a desperate point in his life, feeling alone, abandoned, and unsure of himself.  His song, The Sound of Silence, is about his perspective on the lack of communication and respect he believed was happening all over the world, and it was causing him a great deal of anxiety.  He goes on: 

“Fools,” said I “You do not know

Silence like a cancer grows

Hear my words that I might teach you

Take my arms that I might reach you. 

But my words like silent raindrops fell

And echoed in the wells of silence”

Simon said, “The 60’s was a time of turbulent social change and upheaval.  I was experiencing a restlessness I had never felt before.  I saw all of this fighting between races, genders, age groups, and whole countries, and I wondered where it was ever going to end.  I was concerned that our ability to listen to each other was getting lost.  This song is the result of a vision I had to promote better communication among people who disagreed.”   

In Psalm 46:10, God is recorded as saying, “Be still, and know that I am God.”  If this were a military command, God would be saying, “Attention!”  This verse calls for all combatants to stop their fighting and pay attention to each other's needs.  It is when people cease the singular focus of their self-made agendas and start listening to each other that progress can be made. 

To “be still” and know that He is God means to rest in knowing that there is a God and that He cares.  It means that even with crisis swirling all around us, we understand that ultimately, He is in control. 

Mother Teresa once said, “In the silence of the heart, God speaks.”  Tuning out the distractions of busyness and embracing stillness is an opportunity for reflection and self-discovery that does wonders for reducing or even eliminating our anxiety and promoting better mental health. 

My grandmother always told me that we have one mouth and two ears so that we can listen twice as much as we talk.  My prayer this week is for all of us to uncover the treasure of better communication with God and with each other. 

With love,

Pastor Mike Howard