William Stafford (poet) Quote

The things you do not have to say make you rich. Saying the things you do not have to say weakens your talk. Hearing the things you do not have to hear dulls your hearing. And the things you know before you hear them; these are you and the reason you are in the world.

Crossing unmarked snow: further views on the writer's vocation (ed. Univ of Michigan Pr, 1998)