My darling child, listen. Listen to the birds, to the wind, to the spoken and the unspoken, to the outside and the inside.
When alone, simply ask yourself: ‘what do I hear?’ Before you know it, entire symphonies will be performed that, a moment ago, you were oblivious of.
When with another person, listen to them. Truly and sincerely listen to whoever dares to share with you who they are, how they long, where they hurt, what they embrace. Connect not only with your ears and your mind, but with your heart.
Try to connect to all of them with all of you. If you truly hear them, you will truly see them. In doing so, you will give them the greatest gift of all: your presence.
Pay special attention to the moments of silence; the most profound messages are often spoken wordlessly. If you can remain silent with the other and with yourself, even if just for a moment, you are holding space for whatever is still trying to find its way to the surface, for whoever needs a little bit more time, or courage, to construct either their sentences or their silences. The secret to truly listening is in the waiting. Not waiting to speak, for your turn, not to give an answer, an insight, an opinion, a thought, or a solution, but simply waiting for whatever it is that wants to emerge from the space between you and the other. Be with that space. Even if it feels empty. Even if you are tempted to fill it. Only do so if it flows up to the surface naturally. And if it’s you who is about to speak, be true, be kind, be sincere. If you speak from that place, magical words will be spoken. And heard. Divine connections will be created. You will be amazed.
#whenimnotthereimhere
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