Listen It’s essential to be able to listen... to really hear people. Not just the words they say, but the meaning behind them and the non verbal clues they give too. I know that in the past, as a mum, a wife, a daughter, I have been guilty of being too immersed in my own thoughts to really hear, so I try very hard now to stop and be aware. How often does someone do something as simple as tell you their name and, the next moment, you’ve forgotten it? Easy to do if your mind is elsewhere. Listening to hear and understand is very different to just allowing sound to float around you, through you, without really contemplating it. How good does it feel when you know that someone is taking time to listen to you? Time to care and understand? So how can you do that for others and for yourself? Stop. Be still. Be focused on this moment. Give your whole attention...body and mind to the person in front of you. Care about what they are saying. Giving someone time, your time and attention, is one of the greatest gifts. To be heard gives us value. Listen to the people around you, the people you meet and... listen to yourself. Listen to what your body and mind are telling you. So often we plough through life, oblivious to the whispers of need that both other people and our own bodies utter. It’s important to listen and to take time to listen well.

Posted by SarahA at 2019-03-06 22:17:44 UTC