Silence is neither mute nor talkative. ~Peter of Celle, The School of the Cloister
At camp, we swim and boat in a lake. It’s not a big lake, but it is big enough for fishing, canoeing and jumping off a giant floating trampoline we call The Blob. During summer camp, I make it a point to be in the lake during our swimming activity, partly to be another point of safety, helping count heads and watching for signs of distress. And, in part, I go to the lake because I love being in the water. It restores my body and soul to a state of rest that I find hard to achieve on dry land.
This means that during the camp season, on any given afternoon, you might find me suited up in a life jacket, bobbing in Lake Leo, where I spend most of my time slowly turning 360 degrees, round and round, watching all that is happening: on The Blob, on the shoreline, on the dock, in the water. Here, I am free from the distraction of technology: I don’t have my phone, and my walkie~talkie is back on the beach. Most of the camper activity is beyond me, in one direction or another. Instead, I am simply present. I watch and listen. I watch and listen to what is happening around me and inside me. I listen for the stillness of God resting in my breath, right underneath my breastbone. I listen for what is emerging and what is fading away. I listen for signs of distress and sounds of joy. I wait to see what will happen next.
For me, Lent is like bobbing in the lake. Christmas is behind me on the shore of what has been, and Easter is ahead, filled with the promise of new adventures and new life. From here in the middle, I sit and listen to the silence within, and I watch for the movement of God—behind, ahead, inside—still and buoyant all at once.
For Reflection
How do you practice silence and listening? If it is not a common practice, how might you begin to fold it into your daily life?
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