To be alone by being part of the universe — fitting in completely into an environment of woods and silence and peace. Everything you do becomes a unity and a prayer. Unity within and without. Unity with all living things — without effort or contention. My silence is part of the whole world's silence and builds the temple of God without the noise of hammers.
— Thomas Merton, A Year With Thomas Merton by Thomas Merton, Jonathan Mantaldo, editor