The Sounds of Silence - Background of Song - Words - Celebrating Simon & Garfunkel! Differentiating Light and Darkness

I thought since I'm using this song as the theme for my memoir series of posts, I should provide a little background and the words... The song was written by Paul Simon of the duo Simon & Garfunkel...

The most important thing I learned was that reviewers said that this song was written ahead of its time... How true that has proven to be! I hope you will spend time with me as we explore the words that Simon wrote in the last decade...

Lyrics

Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence
In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
'Neath the halo of a street lamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence
And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
No one dared
Disturb the sound of silence
"Fools" said I, "You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls

And whispered in the sounds of silence"

Here's more from this duo that are my favorites:

~~~

On the other hand, when I first heard the following video of the same song, I could not help but become excited as the dramatization of the video emphasized so much the importance of the words...

There is the darkness of the words reflected much more effectively as we pause to consider just how greatly the world has changed during the last decade as a man has introduced the "art of lying" so much so that at one point early on, a child started doing the same... And when the parent chastized him, he calmly said, "Why?" The President lies, we all know it..." Ok, this may have been a story that was created, but, isn't that what the president has been doing his entire life? And apparently continued into all that he has done since. 

We are losing much in America during this administration. Colleges are being attacked; Public Radio and entertainment venues are being attacked... Funds that have been routinely provided have been taken with no explanation or action by Congress... People post online, it is discovered and suddenly they are being investigated by the DOJ! Worse, people are being judged guilty without due process, a mandate of our constitution...which is constantly being overridden by this administration...

Indeed, it is a very dark period in the lives of American citizens. You don't have to play the videos every time I post them...but just seeing the singer will hopefully remind you that we are in, perhaps, the darkest place we have ever been in...because the madness is at the top of America...and at this point, it appears nobody can figure out how to stop his retribution actions against anyboth and everybody...

We must choose light or darkness

Gabby