The Forgotten Art of Listening

We overspeak when we're anxious. That makes sense now to me. I wonder why you always have so much energy, when I feel as weighty as a log of wood. It makes sense why you feel better by writing lists and filling calendars. It puts off any discomfort you have of doing nothing, of being with yourself in silence. Maybe silence is what we need from time to time in our home. We are always thinking of things and talking I feel my peace come back to me after I put listening before those others parts of human intelligence. Our neighbor next door Lisa, made me also realize the importance of this quality. She gives me the place to bring my thoughts up and center Her quietness, adds clarity and insight to my own words. I told her once that I really valued this quality in her. She is an older woman and has lived longer than any of us. She also doesn't seem to have much pretense about who she is. There is always a smile on her. Living alone has made her rather want to hear another voice than her own. It is probably pushed her that way.