Silence...creepy

Confused by the title yet? I think I still am also. Anyways, let us venture on and maybe we will find our way out. An interesting topic crossed my path today, that of an "awkward silence" with a certain teacher. We'll call him MR....Copeland to protect his identity. An awkward silence is one of the most uncomfortable experiences a person can endure. Mere seconds can seem like an eternity. First the conversers, (word?), break eye contact, an unspoken rule in human interaction. You can not look at the person when you don't have anything to say, that's just strange, and a little frightening honestly. Then, the fidgeting starts. Shifting in the chair, tapping one's foot and faking an itch are all popular choices, but my personal favorite is the raising of the eyebrows when the two people accidentally make eye contact again. This is followed IMMEDIATELY by a glare down at the floor.
Now, this Mr. Copeland, again, someone none of you know, asked if I could see an awkward silence from miles away, why didn't I get out of his office befhorehand. Touche, sir, touche. However, if there were a preemptive departure from the conversation, an abrupt halt of all returned speech, would this not rob us of that conversation which leads to the awkward silence? the all important recapitulation of the conversation and the establishment of a conversation in the near future? But truly my response is this, an awkward silence is like a firecracker going off. You can sit there and watch the fuse burn all the way down to ignition, but no matter how much you anticipate it, you're always going to be surprised when it blows up.
But this leads me to a deeper point still. Silence. What do you think of it? Have you ever heard absolute silence? It is quite possibly the most terrifying experience to me. Monsters and boogie men don't frighten me, but those things that interfere with the psyche, and allow you to terrify yourself, those are truly scary. Complete silence seems unnatural to me. There almost always is SOME sort of noise, but when there is an absence, something seems wrong to me. It feels almost like the calm before the storm, something is about to happen, something is about to break the silence. What is it? Think about that the next time you're sitting around and don't hear anything.
Listening
charles