Saturday Silence

How long can you sit in absolute silence? That answer is different for each of us. If you don't know then you should try it. I sit in silence every morning to begin the day. However, though I practice sitting in silence daily, I am not always successful. I already mentioned in an earlier post that I use the Hallow app for some of my meditations. Well the is a special Lent challenge Pray40. During the challenge we will be following a couple of books; The Way, A Song for Nagasaki & The Power of Silence. (click each title for more information or to purchase) The challenge is formatted to take you on a journey of self awareness, applying the messages found in these books. Anyway, Saturday is dedicated to The Power of Silence and is lead by the author Cardinal Sarah. He talks about the evolution of the world and the often inescapable noise all around us. The sheer pace of our lives, and ever increasing dependency on technology, makes silence ever more rare. This made me pause to think about my habits. I am no stranger to silence, I embrace it in fact, but as I previously mentioned I am not always successful.

That statement may seem odd, how can you be unsuccessfully silent? (the obvious answer not withstanding) First know your purpose for sitting in silence. Are you trying to think through a problem? Are you working to overcome anxiety? Are you trying to defuse an emotional response to something? Are you praying? Knowing your purpose leads to knowing when you are successful. So if I sit to solve a problem and instead write a mental shopping list, I've failed. If I need to reduce stress but think of all the things I need to do, I fail. If I want to listen to what God wants to say but I am distracted by everything around me, I also fail. For example, (true story) in silent prayer I have asked God what direction He wants me to take, am I doing the right thing or should I be doing something else? Then within a minute I find I myself trying to figure out how I could get that spot out of the carpet. Then my daughter my walk in the room and I'll notice she is barefoot and her feet are probably cold so I tell her to get some socks or slippers, I am not actually sitting in silence. it's quiet, I am sitting, but I am distracted.

Then there are people who are very uncomfortable with silence. Some may think that sitting in a silent room while swiping through things on their phone is silence but that isn't it. On the flip side I can tell you there are times when my son is playing the piano loudly, my husband and my daughter are talking and I have completely tuned it all out, and I am in silence. So during Lent I am going to be more attentive to silence. I will mark time intentionally and see what comes of it.

What are your thoughts on silence?

Creamy Chicken & Rice

2 Chicken Breasts

8 cups Chicken Broth

Mirepoix

Sage, Rosemary, Cumin, Basil, Salt & Pepper

2 cups (dry) Wild Rice Blend (cooked) yields approx. 4-5 cups

1/4 c Cornstarch

3 Tablespoons of milk

Heavy Cream

Olive oil

Cook then shred chicken, sauté mirepoix in olive oil until onions are translucent. Add all the spices and let cook another 1-2 minutes then add broth and shredded chicken bring to boil, reduce to simmer, add rice and then in small bowl mix milk and cornstarch and slowly add to pot while stirring, let cook for couple of minutes until soup thickens slightly, add the heavy cream.