Listening

The art of listening is probably the best of all arts out there.  To truly hear what someone else is saying.  To feel their emotions, hear their thoughts, understand where they are coming from, and care enough to understand who they are and what it is that they are speaking. Sometimes words for us tend to blend together in some type of unexplainable form and we wonder what it is we are hearing.  Why does the word dog sound so funny? Or as a friend asked me the other day-- the word guess.  Words, sounds, intonations... they can distract us. And other things can as well.. what will I eat for dinner?  Is my dog still outside?  Is my boyfriend reading a book right now?  I still have to do my laundry!!  I need gas for my car.  Or we just drift off into a daze about whatever concept grabs our attention at the time.  And when someone is monotone-- forget it.. we are way far into la la land and not even caring what they are saying.  They could be talking about fried calamari with mustard sauce on a platter of honey and we still wouldn't hear them!! Is it just people that we should be listening to?  Or perhaps should we be listening to what the wind, the lakes, the animals, and other things are saying to us.  Do we miss signs of importance when we stop paying attention? Would you rather be talking to someone and have them actively listening and communicating with you or have someone sit there and look at you blankly in the face.  I vote for an active listener!  So thats what I try to be.  Sometimes all it takes for someone is to know that there is ONE person on earth who actually sat down and listened to all the muddled thoughts in their head and didn't think them crazy. If listening is so simple.. why not do it every day?  ~Velvet~