Friday, June 19, 2009

Background Noise

I woke up this morning to the sound of rain tapping on the windows. The house was quiet. I could hear the occasional car on the road.

I listened closely for other background noise.

Then I noticed my inner voice, which is getting louder with each passing day. With each deep breath at the start of my day I express gratitude and think about what is possible. I am learning to deny the "what ifs" a place to light as I send them on their way.

Background noise. I can choose what to hear and what to ignore.

Inner voice. I can choose the tone and topic of conversation.

The house is quiet more often these days. With the switch to digital we have lost all but two channels, so regular television viewing is on hold for now. In the past I often used the tv for background noise, morning talk shows for a buzz of distant activity and evening programming as a way to mark time. We are more intentional about what we watch for DVDs or on the computer. The radio and stereo are enjoying a resurgence in popularity.

Now the sounds I hear in the morning are more about what happens in real time. Some days it seems odd. Other days it is a welcome change.

Each morning I have a new chance to set the tone for the day.

5 comments:

Joanne said...

With each passing year, I watch less and less tv, so that now I watch very little, especially in the summer. I find it distracting, and get so much more done with it off, from weeding the garden to blogging to talking to reading. So the quiet house you speak of sounds nice, conducive to so much, including hearing that inner voice. Have a nice weekend!

Janice Lynne Lundy said...

Sharon,
It sounds like you have had a powerful shift of late. Looking for what is right, expressing gratitud for what's here, in my humble opinion, changes everything. Us, how we see things, respond to the world and more. I, too, love the quiet. I don't have a TV and right now I don't even have a radio or CD player in my car. I continue to love the silence and where it takes me...
Blessings!

Anonymous said...

I like the direction you are taking! BTW- I will be up your way the third week in August. I'd love to get together!

Only the Half of It said...

My TV viewing has slowed too and it's really slowed with the digital conversion. We only have cable in one room so nothing in the bedroom, where I used to watch a.m. news or late night TV. The converter box we paid for does not work without the investment of a roof antenna. So now I search You Tube or watch DVDs at night. :-)

Kitty said...

Thanks for posting this, Sharon. I'm printing it out and it's going on my fridge. What you're talking about is one of the basics of how I'm living my life right now, a kind of "spiritual practice", out of necessity as well as choice.