When silence is a choice, it is an unnerving presence. When silence is imposed, it is censorship.
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
Perhaps the Wilderness we fear is the pause between our own heartbeats, the silence that reminds us we live by grace.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that fear of silence and solitude is rooted in the awareness of our existence and dependence on grace.
Terry Tempest Williams reflects on the wilderness as a metaphor for the uncomfortable silence and stillness in life. It implies that in these moments of quiet, we are confronted with our own existence and the beauty of being alive, which can be both frightening and profound. The wilderness symbolizes not only physical landscapes but also the inner spaces of our lives where we pause and recognize the grace that sustains us.
Themes
WildernessSilenceGraceFearExistence
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about mental health, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of embracing silence.
More from Terry Tempest Williams
All quotes →The human heart is the first home of democracy. It is where we embrace our questions: Can we be equitable? Can we be generous? Can we listen with our whole beings, not just our minds, and offer our attention rather than our opinion? And do we have enough resolve in our hearts to act courageously, relentlessly, without giving up, trusting our fellow citizens to join us in our determined pursuit-a living democracy?
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
Once upon a time, when women were birds, there was the simple understanding that to sing at dawn, and to sing at dusk, was to heal the world through joy. The birds still remember what we have forgotten, that the world is meant to be celebrated.
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
I am slowly, painfully discovering that my refuge is not found in my mother, my grandmother, of even the birds of Bear River. My refuge exists in my capacity to love. If I can learn to love death then I can begin to find refuge in change.
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
How do we remain faithful to our own spiritual imagination and not betray what we know in our own bodies? The world is holy. We are holy. All life is holy.
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
The Eyes of the Future are looking back at us and they are praying for us to see beyond our own time.
Terry Tempest WilliamsRead
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