The vocal equivalent of taking a slow drive.
I’ve been suffering from a bout of flu for the past week. Lots of coughing, phlegm, the works.
Yesterday, my throat decided it had had enough. It went kaput and took my voice with it.
I can’t exactly participate in conversations. Ordering things is nigh impossible. Hell, I can barely laugh.
(It comes out more like an anime villain’s “knowing chuckle”.)
And… I’m enjoying it quite a bit.
It’s curious. There’s a lot of noise in everyday life, and in order to not be forgotten, you have to speak up. Even for someone relatively quiet like myself, it’s just what must be done.
You get used to it. It becomes natural to just talk, sometimes for no reason other than to fill the silence.
(Or to make stupid and/or inappropriate jokes, in my case.)
And yet, being stripped of the ability to do so is almost… comforting.
I can concentrate better on what others are saying; think and ruminate on them a bit more, largely excused from having to reply cos it’s obvious that I’m not exactly able to at the moment.
When I want to withdraw and have my introvert moments, it’s a ready-made shield. “Sorry mate, better that I rest my throat.”
And the biggest difference: it’s just one less thing to worry about. I don’t have to think about what to say and how to say it.
It’s nice to have that load off my back for a bit.
I’m not trying to romanticize my plight – I’d much rather be able to talk. I’d much rather be able to sing my favourite songs.
But sometimes, silence truly is golden.