As I’m starting this post, a commercial lawn mower roars next door.

It’s 7:42 am. Ugh. Noise! Too. Much. Noise. It’s everywhere.

Have you ever stopped for a moment to listen? Yes, to all the noise?

What? Am I nuts? Well, yes… But that aside, who listens to the noise?

I chose the word listen over hear intentionally. Of course, everyone hears the noise.

You can’t, not hear the noise. It’s ubiquitous. It’s inescapable.

But, have you ever really listened to the noise? Listening is active, while hearing is more passive. Try it sometime. Listen carefully and intentionally enough and you’ll start to break down the individual components.

Try it… cars buzzing by, a jet overhead, a crow, the broken rhythm of roofers’ nail guns, another jet, hum of an air conditioner, the neighbors’ kid… something else I can’t quite make out. That’s what I’m hearing right this minute.

Think about it for a moment…

When was the last time you experienced true quiet? It’s been awhile, hasn’t it?

I’m betting it’s been a long while.

Let’s expand the definition for this discussion. Let’s say that noise is anything that intrudes on our senses. Too much salt, too much sugar, or too many jalapenos could be considered noise to our taste buds. Too much anything? Noise.

So, we become numb. We think the numbness protects us. If we don’t consciously feel it, it’s not there. Don’t kid yourself, the impact is real.

The numbness makes you miss how the noise makes you feel. But you feel it down to your core. It’s like we’re walking around with tiny little electrodes embedded in our psyches, quietly numbing our senses away.

That’s the message here…

The numbness makes you miss how the noise makes you feel.

Last week, I switched away from my beloved NCIS because slow cooking a dead guy in a hot tub was just too much to take. And I don’t “queas-out” easily. That would be visual noise.

Something else that instantly gets the TV channel changed in our house is yelling, and yelling is noise. It doesn’t matter if it’s a car commercial or talking heads pretending to make relevant discussion. If they start yelling, we start clicking.

Now back to the suggestion of listening to the noise…

When you actively listen to the noise you can see it for what it is. Then you can respond in a manner that’s in your interest, to your choosing.

You respond by changing the channel, by going somewhere else, by choosing something else.

Listen to the noise just long enough to recognize it and see it for what it is. Then take simple, appropriate evasive action. You may not be able to make it go away entirely, but you’ll make it better.

Find a way to give yourself some quiet time. A few minutes every day if you can. I don’t think we’re going to get away from noise in our everyday lives. I wish we could. That’s why it important to find ways to escape.

The ultimate goal… find and experience quite places that “sound like nothing at all” whenever possible.

When you can’t? Become aware of it and take a break. Whenever you need one. And I’m “hear” to tell you… you need one.

And don’t forget… The numbness makes you miss how the noise makes you feel.

 

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