HEARING SILENCE

Gordon Hempton is an Acoustic ecologist. He has recorded and studied sounds and silence in many parts of the world.

“Silence is not the absence of something but the presence of everything . . . It is the presence of time, undisturbed. It can be felt within the chest. Silence nurtures our nature, our human nature, and lets us know who we are. Left with a more receptive mind and a more attuned ear, we become better listeners not only to nature but to each other. Silence can be carried like embers from a fire. Silence can be found, and silence can find you. Silence can be lost and also recovered. But silence cannot be imagined, although most people think so. To experience the soul-swelling wonder of silence, you must hear it.” (From ‘One Square Inch of Silence’)

Hempton says there are only 12 locations on the earth to find absolute quiet. He will only reveal three locations: He names The Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park (near his own home), Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota, and Haleakala National Park in Hawaii. He believes anonymity to be the only power at his disposal to ensure the preservation of the remaining locations, thus the rest are known only to Hempton. 

I know one thing about this: “To experience the soul-swelling wonder of silence, you must hear it.”

“Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.” Jesus