The New Crop: Issue #61
lessons in silence and presence from an acoustic ecologist + "conscious parenting"
What’s in this issue:
💭 Thought: Lessons in silence and presence from an acoustic ecologist
📚 Read: Conscious Parenting: A Webinar
😆 Today’s Laugh
In honor of Mother’s Day in the United States…
In all seriousness, wishing all mamas the best day / weekend. I hope you know how important you are. 💜
💭 Today’s Thought
Gordon Hempton is an acoustic ecologist who travels the world searching for Earth’s rarest nature sounds.
After listening to some of his soundscapes, I was struck by how clear the world sounds without human-made noise.
When you strip away the external and internal sounds that run our lives, like: cars, phone notifications, conversations, negative thoughts, “to do” lists, and worries, what’s left are the purest sounds that have always been there and will always be there. Birds chirping, brooks babbling, thunder rolling in the distance.
What’s most true and natural in this world already exists, it’s just waiting for us to be silent enough to hear it.
A few things I’m now pondering:
How often do I experience prolonged silence? (Rarely)
What’s my relationship to silence? (I’m a bit fearful of it, it’s uncomfortable)
What’s the “noise” in my life? (internal “to do” lists, my phone, TV, social pressures, what others want from or expect of me)
If I just sit here quietly, what do I hear now? (This is an exercise I’m trying out a few times a day to pay closer attention to what’s already happening around and inside of me)
What about you?
Silence is not the absence of something but the presence of everything.
- Gordon Hempton
🖊️ Today’s Reflection
If you’re new to journaling, I highly encourage you to read Nancy Adler’s article: Want to be an outstanding leader? Keep a journal.
This week, find a quiet place and gift yourself 10 minutes to reflect on any of these prompts (or invent your own!):
How often do you experience prolonged silence?
What’s your relationship to silence?
What’s the “human-made noise” in your life?
📚 Today’s Read
Conscious Parenting: A Webinar
This webinar was put together by The Conscious Leadership Group during COVID, to help parents unpack what it means to be present with their children. It’s a long one, but definitely recommend watching, especially if you’re feeling a sense of overwhelm with managing all the things. Click here to watch.
See you next week!
xo,
Anne