He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake, and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.
1 Kings 19:11-12 NRSVue
The excellent Hakai Magazine recently published an excerpt from a new book, Sing Like Fish: How Sound Rules Life Under Water, written by Amorina Kingdon. It addressed the growing reality of underwater noise in the waters of our planet, affecting marine creatures and thereby reshaping ecosystems. Kingdon differentiates between sound and noise.
The Hakai piece was titled, Quieting the Global Growl, a title that could apply to just about every nook and cranny of our daily lives. I've written often enough on the importance of silence and solitude to our spiritual and psychological well-being, yet it is so difficult to find those oases of silence because of the "Unwanted Sound of Everthing we Want." (book by Garret Kaiser.) Where can we go to experience the "sound of sheer silence", to quote from the story of Elijah in the book 1 Kings? Is it an unrealistic expectation in the 21st century and just a reflection of privilege for a few?
We are currently on the islands of Haida Gwaii off the coast of northern British Columbia, seeking a degree of solitude and a taste of manageable adventure. We know that this will be possible at times although we aren't naive about the pernicious nature of noise. There are large ships that ply these waters and while we may not hear them they contribute to that global growl.
We are intentionally attuning ourselves to all our senses while we're here as a sort of spiritual practice and by doing so become more aware of both Creation and Creator. Will we "stand before the Lord." Maybe!
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