One leaf left on a branch
and not a sound of sadness
or despair. One leaf left
on a branch and no unhappiness.
One leaf left all by itself
in the air and it does not speak
of loneliness or death.
One leaf and it spends itself
in swaying mildly in the breeze.
Genuine silence may proclaim that truth is not in the last analysis an idea or a proposition but a reality greater than any argument or matter of speech.
It was said that Abba Agathon lived for three years carrying a stone in his mouth until he had learned to keep silence.
Listen to the silence, for the silence is alive. It speaks through the darkness with a whisper.