On Silence

May Sarton (1912-1995), writer, often wrote about the condition of silence in her books, particularly her journals. People who seek for it may find varied reactions, some even hostile, to a desire often associated with monastic life. Sarton commented that she found it surprising how much men and women in their twenties responded to her journals but she was cautious about recommending solitude to a young person. She warned that the kind of solitude she wrote about belonged to someone a little bit older.

But silence can be a comfort in an unquiet age. We use noise as a means of getting attention, of disturbing the silence, which too often leaves people forced to contend with thoughts and reflections that do not stay hidden forever. Once, someone who had claimed that he enjoyed the silence between us, finally admitted that he found it uncomfortable. He could not stand the quiet and in time, he shared that the demands of prolonged silence became deafening to him. I thanked him for telling me and promised that we would no longer sit quiet in a room together.