Winter

Winter

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Silence


Silence, isn't it a nice word? After the rush and busyness of December, I find that January is nice to rest and have silence. When it is foggy here, the fog, like snow makes sound not travel and makes everything hush.
I have lost my voice so there is something else that brings silence. I have to really think of what I want to say before I speak. Not a bad thing. My words have to count. I think I need this in place all of the time. It also gives me time to think and listen deeper than normal. The one thing I do miss, is singing. I guess when I go about my daily routine, I sing to myself. Not being able to sing makes it seem very quiet.


 I think silence, helps my brain to simplify my thoughts.  It also helps me to think deeper about plans for the future. It also in a odd way makes me content to be at home doing all of those things that I really do love. Being a keeper at home. A helpmate. Have you ever thought about how in the beginning after God created the world and it was perfect. God made a garden and put Adam in it. What a beautiful garden it must have been. Then after naming all of the animals, there was not a helper suitable for Adam. I always think that God must have known how deep was Adam's longing for someone to talk to and be with. So God created Eve. In a perfect world, God made two perfect people for each other. To Adam he gave Eve. His counterpart, as a gift to fill all of his needs. Not the other way around. As a woman, I find my joy comes from that deep feeling of joy, when I am giving up myself for the well being of others. I really do love being that helpmate to my husband, anticipating his needs and putting his needs before my own. 


I don't do it all of the time, very well. I get selfish and self-centered and my will more often than not gets aggravated and short and I do want my own way. Keeping silent though, has helped me to think more about it. It has made me slow down and look at my goals as a woman. I have always wanted to have a gentle, and a quiet spirit. One of my favorite quotes by Elisabeth Elliot goes like this .

“The world looks for happiness through self-assertion. The Christian knows that joy is found in self-abandonment. 'If a man will let himself be lost for My sake,' Jesus said, 'he will find his true self.' A Christian woman's true freedom lies on the other side of a very small gate---humble obedience---but that gate leads out into a largeness of life undreamed of by the liberators of the world, to a place where the God-given differentiation between the sexes is not obfuscated but celebrated, where our inequalities are seen as essential to the image of God, for it is in male and female, in male as male and female as female, not as two identical and interchangeable halves, that the image is manifested.”

 Just some of the things I have been thinking about as I have gone about my days. Trying to get to the bottom of that question that will forever haunt me. Home-making verses Working outside the home. Even now, I find that all of the things I thought I wanted out of my life as a young girl, even today as a woman, still causes me to ponder"well what is it that you do all day? "
The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian makes me a different kind of woman.” Elisabeth Elliot

I guess it is time to make these fingers of mine to be silent as well. I cleaned out my pantry yesterday. I actually had spices from the 1980s. Isn't that amazing. I just kept them for the bottles. I have my own hoarder ways. We have went through three moves and I still kept them.

I hope your day is a wonderful one. It is going to be a pretty day here. Thank you for stopping bye today.

~Kim~


“Maturity starts with the willingness to give oneself.”
  "Elisabeth Elliot---Let me be a Woman"

22 comments:

Pom Pom said...

Elisabeth Elliot is such a model for us, isn't she? Thank you for such good words today.

TexWisGirl said...

enjoy the quiet while you have it. i like that peacock stitchery!

Kerin said...

Love this post.
Silence is golden... and it is so healthy for us to have time to ponder.

I too love being a wife and mother, and every day, I feel so blessed to have this opportunity.
Honestly, when we are serving others, we are really serving our Heavenly Father. So many times, our actions or words are the answers to someone else's prayer :)
Charity never faileth .

Goodness.. you got a lot done yesterday!!
Hope today is a great one for you.. and I hope you get your singing voice back... very soon!!!

Debbie said...

I'm not sure about silence, sometimes the quiet is deafening. I do love simplify, I have that word scattered about my house!!!

Susan Kane said...

Silence is sometimes a gift or a curse. Hope your voice returns soon.

Christine said...

Thank you for sharing these thoughts as I ruminate on the same topics.
I'm glad you can still speak through your blog!

Julia said...

I went to the doctor today for results of my last blood tests and I got a perfect score on all 8 blood test again so to reward myself I went out to eat at a seafood restaurant for lunch and I read the Coffee News while I waited.

It went something like this.
Silence, once it name is uttered, it is already broken.

I love Silence.

Wishing you a quick recovery from laryngitis. I bet you still sound cute.
Hugs,
JB

Kim said...

Its a good word for January. Everything kind of slows and gets still. I'm still laughing at your spices from the 80's. I found some very old pork chops in the bottom of Mom's deep freeze.

Catherine said...

Dear Kim, Silence helps to bring your thoughts in focus and appreciate the music in life.
xo Catherine

Three Sheep Studio said...

Such good and inspiring words.
I crave silence. I cannot be creative without silence.
By the way - I have lost my voice also...from a sore throat that has lasted for days !!
Rose

Nancy said...

"A gentle and quiet spirit"....this verse has always been a favorite of mine. God still has some work to do on me though....I love the quiet as it seems I think better when there's silence. Good post today....

Buttons Thoughts said...

Someday I long for the silence to end. I spend a lot of time alone most days I love it but sometimes just sometimes. Comes from being raised in a family of ten no doubt. Hug B

Kessie said...

I like your thoughts. I need to read my marriage books for a refresher. 1980s spices? Did they have any flavor left?

Gail said...

Silence is a nice thing to have for a while. It will change as all things do.

Janettessage.blogspot.com said...

Great post...so much of it speaks to my heart as well. I am trying to get use to silence..not the kind of not speaking, but the few days I have when no one is home..that kind of silence.

Alica said...

Oh, I'm sorry that you've lost your voice...but yes, silence can be a very good thing! There's just something about being quiet and slowing down that is good for the soul. I hope your day was as beautiful as you were hoping! It's COLD and windy here. Brrrrr...

Nellie said...

I'm sure you are tiring of the loss of your voice. It is good, however, to take time and just be! We often lose ourselves by all our doing. Cold here overnight, and schools are on a two-hour delay. xo Nellie

Gumbo Lily said...

I like the silence of winter. It seems almost overpowering when you realize it. But....I also love it when the birds come back home in the spring and there is lots of birdsong and bustling around.

Elisabeth Elliot is a wise mentor.

From Beyond My Kitchen Window said...

Sorry to read about your voice. I do however know what you mean about silence. After being in an elementary school all day, I love the quietness in my home. I also loved being home as well. I still do. Today with the windchill it will feel like 30 below zero. We will have a 2 hour delay for school. I was praying for a day off. I love to be home on days like this. You are lucky that you have been able to stay home and you also have accomplished so much with homeschooling your children. Have a great day. Think of me as I do my bus duty this afternoon in our Arctic chill. LOL!

Rugs and Pugs said...

I love quiet. When I'm home, the most noise I hear is the dog barking. No music, no TV. Just the way I like it.
Hugs :)
Lauren

Empty Nester said...

I love quiet but there's not much of it around here what with Mr Negative and Molly and, as of tomorrow, Maggie, living here. But when it's foggy at night or in the early morning when only Tucker and I are awake, I can hear the fog horns from the ships on the ocean and it's the most wonderful sound. As for selfishness, let's just not get started on that. :)

Larkrise garden girl said...

I have been recovering from an operation and the silence of illness is a quiet it is different . Life has slowed down with illness and given me a time to reflect and get closer to my lord. It is just him and I quiet together. Hugs cheri