Excerpt from “Being a Compassionate Presence – The contemplative approach to end-of-life care” in The Arts of Contemplative Care.

“Are you dead yet?” her high-pitch voice hurled across the room. “Are you dead yet . . . you in the corner?” She glared at me, wide-awake ready to engage. I had been sitting quietly in her room assuming she was asleep. The physician had pointed to the chair in the corner across from her bed before he shut the door behind him with a resounding bang. I had a sinking feeling in my body. I was a fresh hospice volunteer and novice meditator. I followed the direction of his finger and sat down on the chair. I did what was expected, straightened my back and sat in silence.

Meditation can teach us a lot about the power of silence - how to listen and simply be present.  In a meditation workshop I recently lead, Diana, a young social work student raised her hand after some hesitation at the end a short session of sitting. “I have never sat in a room with strangers in complete silence intentionally.” She took a deep breath. “First, I felt uncomfortable with the situation. Then I realized that I had absolutely nothing to say or do! I had nothing to prove, didn’t have to be this way or that way for anyone. Silence. Wow, …what freedom!”  Everyone in the room broke into laughter, relieved, as she stated the obvious. In our culture we are uncomfortable with silence.