On Listening and Speaking

1beach trees in a laneThe only EP (extended play vinyl record) I ever owned had, on the A side, Lee Marvin singing I Was Born a Wand’rin’ Star, from the film Paint Your Wagon. And on the B side Clint Eastwood ‘singing’ I Talk to the Trees and he went on to (have to say) groan the following words But they don’t listen to me!

Ever thought, been upset about, got really angry about, feeling like, somebody isn’t listening to you? Never mind about talking to the trees, your cat or your plants which I suspect ‘hear’ our words, spoken or unspoken, very well indeed. The felt sense of being heard is heart-rending, when it is not there and most heartening when it is. Enough said!

While I have been thinking about listening and speaking the Clint Eastwood piece has been playing in my brain. Now I’ve share it, it has gone! As if it were that easy to let go of ones persistent thoughts, feelings, emotions etc. etc. etc. Anyway here is a quote for today from Krishnamurti who was very influential in my spiritual growth in my teens and early twenties.

So when you are listening to somebody, completely, attentively, then you are listening not only to the words, but also to the feeling of what is being conveyed, to the whole of it, not part of it.
Jiddu Krishnamurti

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

2 thoughts on “On Listening and Speaking”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.