Quiet Please!

I am alone in the house at the moment. My wife, Angela, is spending a few days with my son, daughter-in-law and our young grandson. I was half way through writing an article for the Journal this evening, when it suddenly struck me how quiet it was. It was not just the silence that struck me but the stillness as well. Don't get me wrong! I'm not saying my wife is noisy, on the contrary, she hates noise more than me and is a very quiet person. In fact I drive her crazy, whenever I have a pen in my hand, I behave like a demented drummer tapping on everything in sight to create different sounds. Come to think of it, maybe that's why she's gone away for a few days. Anyway, getting back to the subject of quietness, the point I am trying to make is, that the more I thought about it the more I realised that it is a commodity that is in very short supply. In fact, in today's hectic society, the one thing that would bring back more happiness and contentment to people is quietness. Wherever we go, whatever we do, we are surrounded by noise. No wonder our ancestors were more contented with life than our generation, they did not have to contend with the noise levels we have today. It seems to me a spell of quietness allows the brain to rest and recharge itself, much the same as when we sleep. Certainly, in times of quiet the brain becomes much sharper, hence the saying 'I can't hear myself think'. Noise also has a bad effect on the nerves, if music is too loud we rush to turn it down. Why? Because it is getting on our nerves. This is why a long walk in the countryside is so enjoyable, it steers you away from the Hubble and bubble of everyday life. After all, which sounds would you rather listen to, the birds singing, the wind rustling the trees or the whirring of the washing machine and the television blaring out. God is that the time? Coronation Streets' on in a minute.