I've definitely had better lunches but not sure I've had a better lunch view. Our friend kindly loaned us her car so we took a Sunday drive on a beautiful Norwegian day. Some of my favorite memories here will be the drives, with our wedding playlist in the background, where the only purpose is taking in the beautiful scenery.
Norway is a quiet country. We live in a quiet house on a quiet street in a quiet city. Like so quiet one of us has to wear noise-cancelling headphones when the other eats cereal in the morning.
As a person who is more loud than quiet, I absolutely love it. It is not just in the noise level but in what you see as well. No billboards. No big box stores. No constant distractions. It makes a Sunday drive, and life, so much more enjoyable.
This was kind of surprising to me when we moved here. In the States, I was the person who had a constant stream of data going into my brain from news in the morning to podcasts during the day to TV at night along with the constant distraction of social media and news updates. Most days there was never a moment of quiet. I would say it's because I wanted to learn and be in the loop but in reality it kept the quiet away.
I don't believe it's possible to create meaningful connection within ourselves and others without the quiet. In the quiet is where the work and the magic happens. It's where we figure out what is important to us and why. It's where we have the space to just take a deep breath and be. It's where we get to know ourselves and realize how cool we really are.
Don't get me wrong I still watch TV, currently on a Modern Family kick, and I still listen to podcasts, too many to name, but it's not just an automatic response. It's intentional and purposeful. Just like adding quiet to my day is now and will be in the future.
