And so we listen...
|
Hello friends, The world is often filled with noise. What helps you listen? It took me many years to learn to listen deeply, instead of trying to anticipate. Trying to anticipate was my child-self’s way of keeping safe. Not that it always helped. Not when violent outbursts were random. But I tried anyway, baking that pattern into my body and mind. Eventually, I realized I wasn’t giving others a chance to really express themselves. I didn’t give myself a chance to express myself on a deeper level, either. But the world needs us to listen. We need to listen to each other. Finally figuring that out, I trained myself to not anticipate, to not fill pauses, and to still myself inside enough to listen more patiently and more clearly. This took years, but it is a practice that I value. As a writer, it is particularly important that I listen, because otherwise my words and characters become flat. As an amateur photographer, I listen, too, and listening helps me notice the world around me more intimately and precisely. Listening enriches life. Noticing helps ground us in place. De-centering ourselves for a moment deepens our connections. So, when bombs drop, how do you listen? When a child cries, how do you listen? When music arises, how do you listen? When whistles sound, how do you listen? When crows call, how do you listen? When a friend needs your presence, how do you listen? What helps? Best wishes — Thorn
|
T. Thorn Coyle
Hello friends, This week, I am at the Between the Worlds/Sacred Space joint conference, gathered with hundreds of people who believe that magic is possible in a troubled world. It’s an important reminder, especially when so many of us feel stuck just providing for our basic needs, or the needs of our families. It is also an important reminder for those of us engaged in community service, protection, and care. Magic helps me pay attention to what is important to me. It helps me manifest what I...
Hello friends, I’ve been angry since childhood. Therefore, I think a lot about love. Seem strange? Like a contradiction? Not so much. My anger has always been rooted in a sense of injustice, on scales both minuscule and large. And that sense of injustice comes from love. When we create from love, we change. When we fight injustice because we love, we change. We change ourselves and each other, and over time, we change the course of things. This morning, a friend sent a bell hooks quote, from...
Hello friends, The great writer Octavia Butler once replied to a student asking about ending the world’s suffering, “There’s no single answer that will solve all of our future problems. There’s no magic bullet. Instead there are thousands of answers—at least. You can be one of them if you choose to be.” Often hailed as a prophet for her science fiction works, Butler insisted that she simply studied history and extrapolated a possible future from that—often recent—past. Many of us saw the...