Signal to noise

Does it ever seem like there is so much noise out in the world that you can barely hear yourself think?

I love to fill myself up on podcasts, audio books, music. I used to listen to Minnesota Public Radio every day, but I now limit that, sadly. (Don’t worry, MPR, I will remain a sustaining member. I believe in what you do, just need to measure it a little more carefully these days).

Some of this noise is chosen, because we like to hear companionable voices as we work, clean homes, or commute to work. This is the role podcasts have started to play for me, in an increasing amount since last fall. I have an audio philes page if you want some recommendations.

Every now and then, something in the noise resonates with me. It is almost like something “clicks” inside me and I hear my body (and sometimes voice) say: Yes! Exactly!  Sometimes it is ideas I have heard before, but I am hearing them in a new way. Maybe Krista Tippet’s guest explained something in a way that makes sense. Or Jonathan Fields gives me a science update that I enjoy. Actually sometimes I want to talk back to the podcast and say: No, actually you are missing this crucial point…

So yeah, I have dialogues with these voices. And no, it’s not crazy to do this. We all do, to some extent.

I try now and then to just turn off ALL the noise sometimes. It takes discipline to do it. I am quiet and I begin to look and listen inwardly, to the voice that resides deep within my soul. She is quieter most of the time, needing some patient attention and waiting to speak until I really slow down to listen.

Occasionally she gives me a big, fat, NO! when I am running counter to her intentions. This is a felt sensation physically, a clench of the stomach or a tightening of the jaw. I did not always pay attention to these signals in the past. But now that I am learning and understanding her language, I try not to ignore her. She has a way of sending reminders to me when I am slow to hear.

For years I only listened when I received distress signals. But now I listen for desires, cravings and dreams. She can be shy about those, so it can take some meditation and deep calm to hear beyond the noise down to these core messages.

They are there, beneath the surface. Some of them puzzle me. What?!? Are you sure, my ego voice asks her? Why would you want that?! But when she is determined, she calmly answers back and does not let herself be moved.

Do you ever try this? Listening to that core inner voice and what it tells you? I am beginning to realize it never steers me wrong. It is the soul, which is the source of all knowing.

May you, my dear reader, tune into your own signals despite the noise. Best to you during this holiday of Thanksgiving in the United States. Grateful for your comments and feedback.