The Power of Silence

I had the opportunity recently to attend a Major League Baseball game. I am not a devoted fan, but when I’m in a city large enough to have a team, I enjoy taking in the experience.

This game had the usual sights and sounds. The crowd roaring with approval when the home team hit a home run. The same crowd jeering just as loudly when a certain opposing player came to bat (apparently during a previous visit he had done something quite unsportsmanlike to a hometown player).

The point is the crowd of thousands expressed themselves by making a lot of noise.

However, there was one remarkable exception.

The team is owned by a family who had recently lost their matriarch. This was the first game since her transition, so before the first pitch was thrown, there was a moment of silence in her honour.

I was struck by how powerful this silent tribute was. An entire stadium filled with thousands of people; all of them virtually silent. To me, this was a far more compelling tribute than a noisy standing ovation.

A week later Amanda and I were back in Nanaimo to continue our search for a new home. It had been a disheartening day. Two places sold just hours before we were scheduled to view them, and nothing else we saw was the right fit.

Late in the afternoon we found ourselves on a boardwalk in nearby Parksville, where we discovered a walking labyrinth built by the community.

I entered the labyrinth with my monkey mind chattering away inside my head (How come??? When will??? What if ???). Yet by the time I reached the center I was far calmer, more grounded and best of all the inner critic had fallen silent.

I was so grateful for this labyrinth. It was a little sanctuary where I could let go of the outer world and reconnect with my inner peace.

It was in that moment I recognized that is my goal for building a spiritual community in Nanaimo. To create a place where people feel safe enough to just be themselves, with no expectations and no judgement. A sanctuary where they can rediscover their true nature and remember who and whose they truly are.

A place where they can laugh and sing and clap their hands.

But also, a place where they can simply sit in silence, when that is what their soul desires.

I can’t wait for you to join us.

Derek