The Sound of Silence

I am finding today to be an odd day. I feel deflated, almost.  On my morning errands, which started late due to falling back to sleep after my son left for school, I found it to be really quiet out. The convenience store where I often stop for a latte, was empty! It is usually a bustling place, mid-morning.  The bank was quiet, no lines or waiting. And, the post office parking lot was void of cars as well.

Is the quietness due to the previous bustle of traffic and polling places, the day before? Maybe. I even found social media to be quiet this morning. It’s odd, but somewhat refreshing at the same time. I’m more than ready for the political ads to end. I was seeing hypocrisy everywhere, even last night, as winners declared their victories and made their speeches. Why wasn’t a cleaner campaign run if that is what you are asking for now? I wonder.  It was like a mud bath, with no one talking about what they really stand for, just slinging slimy fists of dirt at the “other party’s candidate.” Now that the job is done, let’s see some action and see you live up to your words. This applies to all candidates who secured the faith of the voters. I don’t care what party they are from. Let’s make the world a better place – starting at home.

I’m used to a lot of silence. During the day, I do not have the television on nor any music playing. Even at night, only an hour of television is viewed.  It gives me a lot of time to reflect, think, and problem solve, if needed. In truth, much of my writing is done in my head before I even put a pen to the page or open my keyboard. I like it that way. Too much noise is distracting. But, for some reason the quietness of this morning is unnerving to me, almost like the other shoe is getting ready to drop.

I’m hoping that is not true. I hope the sound of silence means that the winning candidates are reflecting on their campaign promises, thinking about integrity – doing the right thing when NO ONE is looking, and making good on the desire to stop the ugly. mud-slinging.   I’m hoping the silence on social media means people are ready to stop gloating, stop blaming, and stop schmoozing.

But, in the end, I’m not sure. Lately, very often in fact, I am surprised by people,the decisions that are made, and what is promoted. We will see in the days ahead as life becomes noisy once again.