Hush, can't you hear it?

When do we ever know silence? Never in the daytime when the faint tap and scrape of pens pervades our thoughts, punctuated by angry stabs at blameless calculators and keyboards. Phones buzz and beep at us, alerting us to another's desire for communication - seldom a mutual desire anyway. One step onto public transport and there are swarms of people talking, listening to their iPods, blaring tasteless music for everyone to hear, tapping their feet to create a rhythm to live by. In the car there is the ceaseless hum of the radio and traffic, horns beeping in protest at some inconsequential happening. In millions of homes across regions and nations, the television talks to itself to create background noise for us to live our lives to. The tick of clocks regulates our days, from the start to the end. As I write I am humming along to a song played loud to pierce the post-midnight quiet of an aging neighbourhood, creating a backing track for my own life.

When did we lose the ability to be alone with ourselves in silence? When was it that communication, technology and sound began to rule our days? When did you last hear the birds sing? I'm guessing you can't remember. So switch off your phone, iPod, PC, washing machine, television, and stay up till the birds sing. You won't cope in the silent hours. Nobody does any more.