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| Lean on me. |
And people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment
and begged him to lay his hand on him.
and begged him to lay his hand on him.
I don’t hear very well. I have very expensive hearing aids but I still have to read faces before I understand a conversation. If I can't see you, I can't hear you. Often, especially with soft-spoken persons or in noisy situations, I just fake it. I hope the person sees that I do care and I am listening even if there is no chance of my actually hearing anything. For some reason she needs to talk, and so I listen. Clearly what this person is saying is more important than my understanding every word.
One of the things I hope for, in the Resurrection, is a good set of ears. How wonderful it would be to hear quiet children and soft-spoken adults, subtle music and nuanced conversations; not to mention crickets and frogs.
Although I don’t hear well, some people say I listen very well. It’s work for me. I have to stop everything, turn my feet toward the speaker, along with my knees, trunk and face and devote all my attention to her voice. Then I have to ignore what she seems to be saying and listen to what she is actually saying. Occasionally, I must ask, “Am I hearing you well?” and try to repeat what I have heard. I don’t know I am listening well unless the other tells me I am doing so.
To listen well I have to set aside some of my own opinions about this person and how she should be living. No one really lives the way I think they should! Not even me! It’s better to let her present her story to me in her own way. What I make of it is less important than what she thinks about it; and very often my listening helps her process what she has been thinking.
Listening is, of course, part of a process. It's never finished. The process is life itself; listening helps people experience themselves as worth listening to. Their lives are not only interesting; they are beautiful. Listening assures them that God is listening with intense interest and passionate love.
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me.
As a teacher, I know the more senses used to communicate concepts the greater understanding. But we all have preferred learning styles. My son, for instance is an auditory learner. As a child, he insisted on going to school no matter what. He just knew he had to hear it; he is not a strong reader. So he earned perfect attendance several years. Today he is a great guitar player.
ReplyDeleteHis mother on the other hand is a visual learner. If I can see it, I usually remember it. Also if I touch it, the tactile is very powerful.
It is wonderful that God can reach each one in so many customized ways.
Fr Ken, you may not hear every sound, but you have a great respect for the silence. That's a gift. Too often people want to fill every second with noise. Silence is much more profound.