Naturally Noisy

Closing our eyes you can train your ears to mistake the sirens of ambulance for the cyclical songs of the chickadees; mistake the blaring horns of the traffic for the honking of a gaggle of Canada Geese; mistake the constant low hum of the powerlines for the stridation of crickets. The sound of wheels moving over the asphalt as cars come and go in waves and the red lights turn green, leading to the illusion of the progression of a river; from calm waters to the rush of rapids the water keeps moving on.

Leaning into this illusion helps me sometimes when I find myself feeling stuck in a place or city. While Fort Worth has been an incredible place to grow these past

three and a half years, I truly miss my home in the mountains.

It was in the mountains that I learned the values that still carry me today: the importance of each living thing, the value of listening to the world around you, that every little thing you do has an impact, and that no single action that you take will bring the world to its knees.

In these moments with my eyes closed, the sun touching my cheeks and warming my skin, I am able to pause and convince myself that I am somewhere else.

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When I sit and listen to the world around me I can be convinced that I am anywhere else, but I am also called to think about the noise pollution that has become exceedingly normal to us.

In class, we have discussed that many of us prefer to wear headphones when we are walking to block out the distractions of the world rather than listening to the world around us. Personally, I often find myself wanting to put on my headphones in order to listen to music or even simply to walk in silence.

Before Braden brought up the idea that he uses his headphones to cancel out the unnatural noises around him I had always put a negative light on myself for not being able to enjoy a walk through a neighborhood without something in my ears. Braden’s different view of blocking out the noise of the city has made me more conscious of when and why I use my headphones. I am trying to not come at it from a place of judgement, but a place of curiosity.

In my curiosity I have tried many things and concluded that there is not one hard and fast rule to judge myself by and I should follow my gut for what I need in the moment.

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With that being said I've been challenging myself to intentionally walk and run without music. It's been difficult to find motivation and rhythm while running, but I have loved going walking without it. I plan to continue experimenting and working to not rely on my headphones.