dymoonblog

dag/Hallo, hello? you hearing me?

Buen dia. bonjour, once the greetings are said, how carefully do you listen.  Do you sometimes feel that you are talking into a void, even though you have someone there, talking with you, do you sometimes feel their thoughts are elsewhere? When it happens to you, how do you react, do you pretend you don’t notice, or do you  end the conversation and move along.  I guess it can depend on the situation.  I was on the receiving end of such a conversation last night, someone initiated a conversation with me, then suddenly it was as if, the person was in another room, then he said he had another incoming call, would I mind waiting. Sound familiar, happen to you?   My reply is to say, hey no problem call me back when you have time, and I hang up.  I personally would not do that to someone I had called, nor do I appreciate someone doing it to me.  Call me old-fashioned, but if you call to speak with me, then whoever else is calling can wait.

More and more with the new technology the niceties  are slowly fading in our interaction with others.  Communication is peppered with icons, acronyms and broken down sentences so that maybe your message is understood, maybe it  isn’t.  Our cell phones, iPads, note books even make spelling  corrections for us, that can and often completely change the direction or context of the message being sent. The question should be, not only can you hear me, but do you understand what I am saying to you.

I have one friend who can drive me crazy when he texts … I can see he is writing, and so I wait, the little pen stops, and nothing comes across to my screen, he does this several times, so I can see that he has something to say, but what I also see is he changes his mind 3, 4, sometimes 5 times and then says nothing.  It is a catch 22, I’m thrilled at being able to text to friends all over the world, have real-time conversations, but on the other hand,I miss a good old-fashioned letter, where thoughts are carefully put on papers, maybe even a few doodles, then signed with care/ love, and sent.  The recipient always knew that the person who wrote, spent time composing and thinking about what to share, then took the time do do an envelope and post the visit  for you to receive and enjoy.  Snail mail, miss it!

The empty corridor reminds me of  communication today, we are in such a hurry to get on to the next task or conversation, we miss out on the nuances and often the intent of the conversation we are currently having.  Listening will soon be a lost art.  The ability to have a real meaningful conversation will it fade into history too?  We all want to have, and be good friends.  And,  Lit we desire  relationships that are long lasting and enduring.  To achieve this, after we say our Guten Tag, we really do have to listen and be present in the conversation we are entering into. Yes!  Listen to others carefully and with a clear mind.

pictures -Pinterest