October 26, 2025

By Arthur H. Gunther III

thecolumnrule.com

Don’t overlook the quiet as you rush through the day doing numerous required tasks, general living, contact with others. Quiet awaits on the comfortable chair you just whizzed by.

The world is crazy today; it has always been so, and certainly beyond that with war, other harm, neglect, inequality. And we’ve always had things to do in our survival, or if it is that moment, joy. But wherever the day takes you, that chair awaits.

It is a necessity. You can be a social animal, you can accomplish great things, you can just get by. You can be surrounded by people and events. Others may depend on you. You may be a giver or more of a taker.

Whatever the situation, if it is at all possible, tune out. It’s not impolite. It is a recharge, which could benefit others as well. And, hey, sometimes you have to say, even under your breath, who cares? Forget it. Never mind. I’m done.

If you can’t reset your frequency, what good are you to others? To you?

Some eons ago, two people I know climbed a mountain, and atop against an expansive view, they physically moved apart. She sat down on a rock, very quiet in her sudden quiet, and at this moment he had some sense, so he moved away and walked about, returning to her vicinity after awhile.

He said nothing. She offered apology for her quiet. He said nothing. Her apology was not necessary.

We all require our quiet, whether it’s in a comfortable chair or on a rock.

The writer is a retired newspaperman.

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