The Things We Don’t Say: How Silence Became the Language of Our Generation

The Quiet Distance Between Us

In a coffee shop, two friends are seated opposite one another. Coffee mugs warm their hands, but their eyes are glued to their phones. Though alerts blink on the screens and conversation fills the air, between these two buddies is a sensitive, invisible barrier.

They laugh at memes, exchange updates, talk about work, and show their exhaustion, but neither raises the weight both of them carry.

One of them exhales a big breath. The other replies with a slight grin.

They are surrounded by a silence that is soft, familiar, and painfully loud.

This highlights the paradox of our time: though in many ways we share so little, we have never communicated more.

A Culture Calling for Expression

We are prompted in the present to "voice our opinions," "let our emotions show," "be truthful," "reveal our realities," "narrate our experiences."

Openness is expected in society—images of our meals, status updates mirroring our feelings, confessions with painstakingly written captions.

But here is the joke:

We go further into silence as the world raises its noise.

We hide the important realities.

We cover up emotions too strong to express.

Phrases that start in our throats we withhold.

Not owing to ignorance on how to phrase them—

but since we wonder if anybody is really paying attention.

Silence as a Shield

We have come to manage situations in silence.

We keep silent for several reasons:

We do not want to load anyone.

Being judged causes us anxiety.

We worry our emotions may be misinterpreted.

Our aim is not to exhibit any symptoms of fragility.

We prefer to sidestep probable conflicts.

We wish to avoid saying anything we might come to regret later.

Keeping silent seems to be sometimes safer than speaking the truth.

Who hasn't written a long letter?

simply to erase it?

Who among us hasn't spoken?

That never happened, right?

Who has not cried in silence?

... notwithstanding stating I'm alright?

This quiet is not nothing. It functions as a sort of self-defense, a shield we carry everywhere.

The illusion of partnership

We believe we are linked since we keep continual contact.

Still, just discussion cannot bring about genuine connection.

In the digital realm, we can filter our flaws, conceal our concerns, reduce our suffering, and alter our language.

True relationships are significantly more complex.

It calls for one's physical presence.

It calls for risks.

It requires weakness.

It's not easy to communicate any of these elements in a tweet or social media post.

Though we have become masters of broadcasting, we are losing our ability for self-disclosure.

What follows is the results:

One generation surrounded by others nevertheless feels strongly alone.

The Fear of Being Seen

One of the most urgent issues we now have is the fear of being genuinely acknowledged, not loneliness.

Exposure helps one to be seen.

Exposure makes one open to harm.

Being open can be terrifying in an unsuitable environment.

Authenticity has become a show for others on social media:

Cry somewhat, but not excessively.

Make the revelation; nevertheless, make sure it is appealingly shown.

Be receptive, but just in appropriate manners.

We therefore modify by stifling the parts of ourselves that conflict with the narrative.

Our concerns:

our pain.

Our confusion.

The facts as they stand.

We keep them buried within us, where no computer algorithm may assess them.

When Silence Transforms to Isolation

Two kinds of silence exist:

1. Quiet security

In this stillness we can ponder, hesitate, process, and recover.

It helps.

2. Apart from Quiet

This quiet builds obstacles.

The distance that divides others from us.

The quiet that progressively intensifies over time.

Often we get them confused.

The main goal of protection finally turns into isolation.

And ultimately alienation becomes loneliness.

We have no plans to cut ourselves off from the rest of the world.

We just forget how to greet them inside.

What We Really Want

Most of us do not search for answers.

We are not seeking advice.

Big gestures are not what interests us.

We yearn for someone to utter:

Share what you've been concealing; I am here.

We ask for patience.

We seek knowledge.

We seek for an atmosphere where silence may calm rather than strengthen.

Still, we rarely inquire.

The distance then grows.

The Expense of the Untold

Feelings do not disappear when we hold too much inside; they accumulate.

Unsaid sorrow turns into weariness.

Unsaid rage transforms into bitterness.

Untold love becomes regret.

Unspoken terror causes anxiety.

Untold causes separation.

Relationships do not deteriorate as a result of fights.

Because of unresolved problems, they deteriorate.

Learning to Break the Quiet

Breaching the silence does not call for dramatic disclosures.

It doesn't ask for faultless articulation.

It lacks courage with a cinematic sense.

At first the sound was faint.

a little bit of reality.

A short acknowledgement.

some chance.

I'm having a battle.

I want you so terrible.

I'm afraid.

I require assistance.

I am uncertain of my feelings.

Disclosure of even somewhat of our reality lowers the stranglehold silence has.

A New Form of Bravery

Speaking honestly is the bravest thing you can do in a society where people never stop talking.

Just some of them.

Not to those who share their values.

Not to virtual contacts.

but to just one person.

one you depend on.

someone who merits honesty.

By taking the chance to be open, we allow others the freedom to do likewise.

Openness turns into an approach.

And all of a sudden, the concept of connection looks achievable once more.

The Silence Connecting Us Together

Silence ought not to be a wall.

It could offer a link.

Between two individuals, a hushed understanding.

Somewhere where sensitivity can flourish.

When what is not said becomes circulated.

Should you ever experience the urge to hold back:

Rest now.

Attend.

Sense the truth wanting to be said.

Disclosure may now be time for it.

For in a society where dialogue is the center,

The most important deed of all might be the guts to end the silence.