Wednesday, November 7, 2012

A lovely compliment

I have been learning how to listen.  For a woman that has so much to say and at the most opportune times, I have to just put it out there, that sometimes I don't listen very well.  I want to learn to become a great listener, I'm working hard on it. I want to really learn to hear people.  To everyone out there, and in my defense, There is still hope, and God isn't through with me yet.

Several weeks ago, I was having a conversation with a woman who wanted to share a few things with me in an effort to free her mind of the clutter that sometimes deplete our soul, and weigh down our spirits.  She began to share with me her thoughts, and I listened.  I listened hard, I defeated the urge to stop her mid-sentence and I defeated the urge to interject my thoughts to quickly.  I listened and wasn't fearful I would not remember something important to tell her.  I relaxed, and I let her relax, and before you know it, a couple of hours had gone by and she had rid herself of some crippling and potentially damaging thoughts.  

When it was my time to speak, I was surprised I had no problem remembering everything that she had said, and I remembered everything that I felt I needed to say to her.  She needed a  lot of comfort, and at that moment, all I wanted to say was something that would eradicate the path of thinking she was on.  I took a deep breath, and it came so naturally.  I felt at ease talking to her because I had listened so well to what she had to say. We had dinner, and talked more.  She left with some decisions to make, but she knew she had options, and she knew that she had someone who would listen to her and someone that she could talk to. 

A few days later, I received the nicest text.  It simply said "I pray to one day have the wisdom that you have.  Thank you for listening to me."  A lovely compliment.

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