When we were children growing up, I remember well my mother on some occasions would say, “I need some quietness.” When we heard her say that, we all knew it was time to listen and quiet down. She said it and she meant every word she said. She always followed up by saying, “Enough is enough!”
I never really understood why she felt she needed some quietness until I grew up and started working with other people. It did not take me long to agree with my mother when she would say, “I need some quietness.” Many times, I have felt the same way in my life.
I have been places and around others when it would have been a great blessing to enjoy some quietness. Have you ever said something to someone and later you wish you had just kept quiet? “What sweet delights a quiet life affords” — Henry Drummond.
About 55 years ago, when I first met my wife’s father, I often wondered why at times he could sit for long periods of time and never utter a word. I thought to myself, “What is he thinking about. Why is he so quiet?”
As time went and years passed by, every now and then my wife would ask me the question, “Why are you so quiet?” I would answer her by saying, “Oh, I’m just thinking.” She would ask me what I was thinking about and often I could not tell her because I was enjoying my quietness.
“True silence us the rest of the mind, and is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment. It is a great virtue. It covers folly, keeps secrets, avoids disputes, and prevents sin.” — William Penn.
My father at times would say to me, “George, you are to be seen and not heard.” Later, I realized that, while growing up, just how good his advice to me really was.
I like the words of Publius Syrus when he said, “I have oft regretted my speech — never my silence.”
The next time you question another person’s silence, give them the benefit of the doubt. They may be wiser than you realize.
“In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength” Isaiah 30:15.
THINK ABOUT IT!
