Quiet Coffee

I need the quiet.

Sometimes.

More than I realize.

I become so used to noise that I forget the importance of quiet and stillness.

The last couple of weeks there has been a constant noise in the house here.

Not a loud noise, but a constant noise.

Beyond the frig cycling on/off.

Beyond the AC doing the same.

The weather has been hotter, so the fans have been on 24/7 - ceiling fans that rattle their chains, the desk fans that whir, the stand fans that mask any silence.

I didn't think much of it.

Just trying to stay cool.

And, I usually keep either an old sitcom/movie playing in the background, or music playing.

More to hide the silence that comes as a widow than to actually watch or listen.

Then, yesterday evening, the neighbors about 4 houses down had a celebration - a Quinceanera.

It was a beautiful set up, and the cars lined both sides of the street.

Makes my heart happy for the young lady and her family to be so celebrated and honored.

The music lasted way into the early hours of this morning - with a beat that literally rattled my windows.

Somewhere in the early morning, the music stopped.

People found their vehicles and drove away.

And with the cooler temps outside due to a cold front that came thru - the AC is not needed, even the fans have been given time off.

The house is so still and quiet this morning.

Only the keys being typed on, the ice that rattles in my glass, and my own breathing.

Perhaps a bird chirping in the distance, and even they sound more silent.

The quiet.

The stillness.

I did not realize until just this morning how much I have missed this.

How I have taken these moments for granted.

Life will begin once more in the hours to come.

But for now.

I will embrace the silence.

I will treasure these moments of clearer and sharper thinking.

Before I take it all for granted again.