Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Can you hear the quiet?

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Silence. It comes
To you: all this is made of silence. All
The patchwork tonnage of millenniums,
The sun-built cliff, the trees
Which reeve the boulders to the sky, the
Wide,
Light-dusted river that’s about to stall,
So slow its downstream glide:
You’re spellbound by inaudibilities,

And simply sit
To wait possession out. Now every sound
That skiffs your hearing till you notice it –
The strokes of air that comb
The foliage, the freshets, birdsong
Sketches –
Emerges from and forms a mesh around
That silence, where it stretches
Suspended like a geodesic dome.
[stanza 3 and 4 from Euroka by Stephen Edgar]the poetry of Edgar is a recent discovery for me...i am awestruck by it...


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all photographs from astrophotographer Laurent Laveder (how much fun would it be to be an astrophotographer!)


Where do you find your silence? Mine is usually found as I sit quietly in the garden. Or sometimes when lost in doing a piece of art. Mostly it comes when I'm meditating;in that space, that millisecond, after exhaling.
Of course, there are very few moments of real silence for most of us. But that’s okay; it’s the listening really that matters. Really listening, being aware of the mundane sounds, the lovely sounds, the grating sounds. Being there in that moment.


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10 comments:

Couture Carrie said...

Very cool pics!
Lovely poem, too!

xoxox,
CC

Jennifer said...

Beautiful <3

Hot Fudge said...

I think I want to be an astrophotographer, particularly if I could bring to life such beautiful poetry.

Witchcrafted Life said...

These captivating, ethereally lovely images and the poetic words you so perfectly matched with them resonate deeply with me, as I have only just recently been given back the gift of silence.

You see, we used to (for about 3.5 years) live in a high rise apartment that was located directly above the single busiest highway in all of Canada (Highway 401). Adding to the noise was a busy multi-lane street that ran right in front of our building. As you can imagine, there was a constant about of noise pollution that permeated our daily life.

After a while we stopped noticing it quite as much, yet never forgot that it was there. A few weeks ago we moved however, leaving behind the maddening whirl of the big city and settling in a small town on the other side of the country.

Our new home (a townhouse) is located on an idyllically quite street. How quiet you ask? Well, instead of staring at other houses or an urban setting across the (tiny two lane) street (that leads up to a golf course) we have a tiny little babbling stream and a beautiful hill to look at.

Silence, I am elated to report, has been found once more and it is golden.


Thank you sweetly for your lovely comment on my vintage wardrobe post today, dear lady, it's such a terrific treat to hear from you again.

♥ Jessica

Anonymous said...

Wonderful images. Silence? One hour dog walk every morning with my partner. No words- just thinking/or not.

Katrina Jackson said...

I need to carve out more time for silence. I get it when I work in the mornings, but the figures are screaming in my brain. :) I LOVED this post. The poetry I am going to have to get ahold of so I can devour more. The photographs were just amazing. Thanks for sharing! Always love to come here to see beautiful things.

Myrna R. said...

I was visiting Snowbrush, and your comment caught my attention because it sounds like you're taking care of your elderly dad and I've cared for two elderly ladies.

Anyway, I decided to visit you. So glad I did. What a lovely, creative blog you have. I peeked at some of your past posts. They all seem to be packed with splashes of color and art.

Your post today is wonderful. The photos are fantastic. The poem ... well I'll have to read it again, in silence.

Joanna Jenkins said...

Love the moon shots.... They're beautiful and creative.

I think I find my silence when I'm sitting at my sewing machine. Although it's not actually silent, it can transport me away from whatever my be bothering me :-)

xo jj

Chrisy said...

I'm sitting here this morning reading your comments dear readers and I feel a little choked up. We're all so similar aren't we, we humans...thank you for sharing with me.

Imogen said...

Beautiful pictures and words. I definitely need my time of silence. I think it is extremely important. I usually get it late at night. I think that is why I stay up so late, I really enjoy that time.