Danish philosopher Kierkegaard once wrote, "The present state of the world and the whole of life is diseased. If I were a doctor and I were asked for my advice, I should reply: 'Create silence! Bring people to silence.'"Mother Teresa of Calcutta wrote, “See how nature – trees, flowers, grass – grows in silence; see the
stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence ... we need silence to be
able to touch souls.” And Chinese Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu, wrote, “Silence
is a source of great strength.”
Amidst the hustle and bustle of
our noisy world, why is silence important to you and how do you create or find
it? Where do you find peaceful places where there is little or no noise to
distract you (at the seashore, in the forest, in a place of worship)? What is
the power of silent places? Why is a measure of silence important? Is silence
important in your personal creative process?
This week, let’s look at silence
and what it means to us and, then, let’s write a poem that in some way,
“speaks” of silence.
Examples:
Questions to Consider before Writing:
How do you define “silence?”
What does the term “perfect silence” mean to you?
How are silence and stillness related?
Can you list several places in which you have found (or
continue to find) a special kind of silence?
What’s the difference between actual silence and spiritual
silence?
How may silence be more powerful than a scream?
How is silence the space between two thoughts?
How does silence between the notes give music its meaning? (Does
this suggest any metaphors for your poem?)
"If you are a writer you locate yourself
behind a wall of silence
and no matter what you are doing, driving
a car or walking or doing housework
you can still be writing, because you have
that space."
– Joyce Carol Oates
