"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." Winston Churchill

Listen.

I love words.  I love the sound of the word listen-the soft sounds-the first syllable emphasized-the ending is left almost like an invitation to lean in and be a part of something.  The potential opportunity to receive a gift from someone, to participate in something beautiful, interesting, funny, challenging, confirming, lovely--I love this word.  This is my word of 2019.

Unlike last year, this word has, in its soft, gentle way, been shouting at me to be still for a minute and LISTEN.  I was perusing the internet and fell into a tiny, intriguing rabbit hole on a site called Medium that hosts blogs from some fascinating people.  They were posting people's words of the year.  My favorite by far was by Nancy Gibbs-her word was "listen," and the title was, "We risk getting dumber and meaner when we don't listen."  I started really thinking about when I felt dumb and mean.  It was almost always a result of me hearing something but not really listening.  I hate that feeling.  I worry that I am at risk of insulating myself from that feeling by choosing only to listen to the things I want to hear (no worries about having to hear something I don't like and having to deal with the fact that maybe I have been dumb and/or mean even if I didn't intend it).  And, the truth is, the only time I ever got over feeling dumb and mean when was someone patient and kind allowed me to really listen.  When someone gave me the gift of allowing me to hear their story, ideas, and authenticity I grew.  I knew that I wanted to figure out a way to make sure I got some more of that in my life.

Next, I posted a simple post about something happening at school.  I think the post asked about what my friends wished kids could learn.  Someone I respect posted, "I wish we could all learn to listen to each other."  Wow.  I thought about that for a long time (Okay, I'm writing about it now, so I must still be thinking about it.)

Last year was filled with some of the best memories and travels, and watching people I love grow and bloom, but it was also filled with tremendous change and challenges for my family and me.  2019 looks to be equally as challenging, and I am excited and nervous and thoughtful about what I need to do.

And I know I need to listen, to really listen instead of merely hearing.  I want to listen to understand and learn, not to judge or fix or interject.  

Last year my word and my goals were immeasurable, and I feel like I let myself slide, but this year, I am resolving to do something each month outside of my comfort zone--maybe I'll read a book or poetry from someone not like me, listen to music I don't naturally gravitate towards, visit an exhibit from a different point of view, talk to someone I normally wouldn't, listen to a podcast that holds an opinion I don't understand or hold--I have no idea what I will do, but I'm going to try some new stuff.  I will try to write about each experience I have.  I am going to seek out people, and places, and culture that is not like me and I am going to spend time listening.  It's what I most want for the world, and so I'm beginning with me.  

So, if you'd like to talk to me, I'd love to listen.  I appreciate so much all of the fantastic, different, and astonishing humans in my life, and I am genuinely looking forward to my year of working on listening.

Comments

  1. HelenJanuary 2, 2019 at 5:18 PM

    Interesting word choice... I read something just this week about LISTEN. If you re-arrange the letters, you get SILENT. You can't really have one without the other.

    ReplyDelete

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