[The Spiel, Feb.] Of those who say nothing…

Of those who say nothing, few are silent. ~ Thomas Neill

There are many facets of my personality that have morphed or been replaced as I’ve gained more years, i.e., as I’ve “grown up.” One constant has been my affinity for quotes.

In high school, I would use as many quotes as I could manage in nearly every essay, often trying to find ways to work in quotes by sinister men such as Hitler, Goering, Stalin, et al.

I don’t remember when or where I read this quote for the first time, but that is not to, in any way, make its effect on me seem minimal. Rather, I think it speaks to just how much it has impacted my way of living; truthfully, I cannot even remember a me who didn’t attempt to practice what the quote preaches.

Furthermore, I’m not sure who Thomas Neill was, what he believed in, or what inspired him to utter these words.

Does that make them any less true?

This day and age, it seems that we are bombarded by incessant blathering from all sides, whether it be on the radio, on Facebook, on TV, what have you. Moreover, we are living in a world where people find themselves incapable of simply coexisting in the same space with other individuals in silence, each a captive of his own thoughts.

I’m asked oftentimes whether something is wrong or if I’m depressed when, in fact, I’m simply meandering through my own thoughts. There are whole days where I am so absorbed in my own musings and ideas that I find myself irritable and undeservedly curt with others.

When I was younger I was not very good at dealing with people on such days, especially my family members. Thankfully, I’ve been able to get past that as time has gone by.

For fear of beginning/continuing to speak of nothing, I must now resign myself to silence and allow those words to marinate within each of you in hope that we may have a quieter, more peaceful world that is filled with well thought out discourse.