"When only silence remains" , by Erik Pevernagie, (100 x 100 cm), Oil on canvas .xx

When we want to let loose, silence can be a welcoming and hospitable partner. The flow of time can rouse a comforting wave of sound vibrations, gently opening the skyline.

Silence is a "contingent" phenomenon. It has positive or negative qualities, and we must "contextualize" it.

If we want to understand its imprint, we must put silence in context. This allows us to retreat, reflect, rejuvenate, and gain a redeeming strength. We escape then triviality and find depth and meaning.

Because of its dual quality, silence can be both a source of comfort and discomfort. Silence lets us recognize the subtle layers and textures within and cleverly navigate its impacts on our lives.

If we experience silence as an interval, it may be a breathing space that spawns release and wellness. At a time of appalling inflation of words, silence has the power of creating 'spiritedness' and making room for imagination. It can invite us to a reviving retreat in a world of new perspectives.

Silence can be a redeeming rescue from an environment increasingly confronting disturbing noise and hollow words. "Every word is like an unnecessary stain on silence and nothingness."( Samuel Beckett)

If we want to let loose and let reality sink in, silence can be a welcoming partner. It becomes a refuge, a sanctuary for peace and clarity. It helps us reset and provides a canvas on which new thoughts and perspectives can emerge.

Sometimes, silence can be intolerably screaming. If it means the absence of communication, friendship deficiency, and emotional deficit, it may be a heavy burden to bear, an unbearable weight.

After pandemic showdowns, many may long for the glow of a new dawn and crave bright and loud life stories with liberating slapsticks to shatter silenced desolation and pent-up rage, restoring self-value and broken identity.

We may think that silence is only the absence of sound. But we can claim that silence itself is a kind of sound on its own. John Cage teaches us that "there is no such thing as space or an empty time. There is always something to see, something to hear."

When we fall offhand in a gap of silence, we may experience life as frightening, but we know we can interpret and manage it.

Phenomenon: silence