Silence is also a form of speaking. Theyre exactly alike. Its a basic component of language. Were always selecting what we say and what we dont. Why do we say one thing and not the other? And we do this instinctively, too, because no matter what were talking about, theres more that doesnt get said than does. And this isnt always to hide thingsits simply part of an instinctive selection in our speech. This selection varies from one person to the next, so that no matter how many people describe the same thing, the descriptions are different, the point of view is different. And even if there is a similar viewpoint, people make different choices as to what is said or not said. This was very clear to me, coming from the village, since the people there never said more than they absolutely needed to. When I was fifteen and went to the city, I was amazed at how much people talked and how much of that talk was pointless. And how much people talked about themselvesthat was totally alien to me.For me, silence had always been another form of communication. After all, you can tell so much just by looking at a person. At home we always knew about each other even if we didnt talk about ourselves all the time. I encountered a lot of silence elsewhere as well. There was the silence that was self-imposed, because you could never say what you really thought.