How to hate silence.

(Straying away from the How To format for a little while tonight.)

What makes something more wrong than right? Is it the actual action or the thought process that goes with it?

Arguably, it's neither. It's silence.

The holocaust (yes, an overly used example, I know) was wrong, and for many reasons. It was wrong because of all the people that were lost. It was wrong because of the horrible things done. But, the shocking thing about it that makes it the absolute worst, is the silence. It was not wrong because of the death and the horrible things, it was wrong because of the silence that came after those things.

A child who steals a candy bar from a store is not a criminal. A child who does not tell anyone about it later and does not try to fix what he has done, is. It's not the action of stealing it that makes it so wrong, its the silence that follows.

When someone makes a mistake, it is not exactly the action that makes it wrong, its the silence after when no one is trying to fix it.

What is wrong is when no one says "I'm sorry" and all you hear is silence. What is wrong is when a child is crying and no one is there to say "it's okay" and all they hear is silence. What is wrong is when someone sees something horrible and no one stands up to say "Please stop," and all we can hear is silence. 

How to write nothing.

Try to think.

Put your hands on the computer. Begin to type absentmindedly.

Stare at it for a long time.

Close your eyes.

Delete. Write a little more. Post.

How to be invisible.

Sit in class. Don't talk. Just do as told.

Sit at work. Say something occasionally. No one will notice. Stare at the clock.

Sit in the car. Watch everyone else drive by. Listen to the sounds your car makes. Wish it would be quiet.

Sit at home. Clean for a little bit. Try to talk. No one will hold a conversation.

Return to sitting in a car. Look at a phone. Laugh occasionally.

Sit on the couch. Listen to the guitar. Text and laugh. Observe.

Back to the car. Talk occasionally. Stare at the stars.

Stand on your front step. Say goodbye. Walk inside.

Sit on your bed. Stare at a computer. Listen to the sounds everyone is making. Wish they would be quiet.

How to smile.

Sleep in a little too late. Rush to class. It takes 11 minutes to get to school and 8 minutes to get to your class. You have only 9 minutes. Still make it on time. This starts the day good.
Go through the rest of your classes easily despite not having read any of the homework. Drink some amazing hot chocolate.
Don't spend lunch with your boyfriend. His meeting is more important than you. (Hmph.)
Go to work. Eat a lot of chocolate. Listen to office gossip.
Go home. Clean the bathroom a little bit. Wait.
Walk around Walmart with the boyfriend. Hold hands and laugh and be happy. Today is a good day.
Think about how much better it feels to laugh.
Smile and be happy. Life is so much simpler that way.
Understand that sometimes life is hard and when it is hard, it becomes really easy to start thinking about all the things in life that are wrong. This, of course, makes life even harder. But when you smile and stop thinking, life is simple. It's living from one breath to another without having to think about it. It's laughing effortlessly at anything even remotely funny. It's smiling without having to remind yourself to keep smiling. It's holding his hand without wondering when he's going to let go.
Simple.
Live happily.
Even if it is just for the moment.
One happy day can erase 7 sad ones with one simple smile.