"The great silences mean more than stillness. They are the ancient overpowering silences this planet knew before the advent of modern man . . . The silence . . . dealt with distance, timelessness, and perception, a sense of being engulfed by something greater where minor sounds were only a part, a hush embedded in our consciousness . . . Quiet is a temporary thing, the old silence ageless. It is the background of our inherent feeling for the earth, part of our inner self and of the cosmic point of view, the core of mysticism, of religious belief, and of myth and legend . . .
"We cannot all live in the wilderness, or even close to it, but we can, no matter where we spend our lives, remember the background [of silence and timelessness] . . . , and remember that days, no matter how frenzied their pace, can be calm and unhurried. Knowing we can be calm and unhurried, we can refuse to be caught in the so-called rat race and the tension which kills Godlike leisure. Though conscious of the roar around us, we can find peace if we remember we all came from a common . . . primeval background."
Sigurd F. Olson
Photo: Aspens and "The Castles" from Ohio Pass, near Crested Butte, CO, October 2, 2011. My wife insisted I share this photo, which is a favorite of hers.
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