💾 Archived View for gemini.onedimension.net › thought › silence.gmi captured on 2023-05-24 at 17:57:27. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
⬅️ Previous capture (2023-01-29)
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True silence is very rare.
A couple of weeks ago I was in the eastern sierra[1] and went on a hike up to a small lake. Every time I stopped and listened, there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. A bird occasionally would make a noise and break the silence, but otherwise complete nothingess.
It made me realize how rare that is, silence. The only times I could remember silent environments were when I was deep in the mountains, away from roads and people. And only at certain times of day, when there's no wind, no birds. High elevations usually.
There's something about it that's simultaneously unnerving and peaceful. It causes you to question your own internal monologue; every thought feels strange. It's extremely clear it exists[2] as a thought, and you notice its existence.
It's a peaceful kind of situation too; I find it's easier to acknowledge each thought and not simply get carried way down the river of thoughts as they're constantly spawned by the mind.
Last updated Mon Dec 06 2021 in Berkeley, CA
1: /thought/trip-eastern-sierra-2021.gmi