And listening to the history of our heart allows us to hear and feel the sweet ache of being alive.Įach of these ways of listening-to our inmost self, to the silence that joins everything, to the soul's calling for meaningful work, to the call of the soul to simply be alive, to the complete presence of others that holding nothing back opens in us, and to the tug of life and its sweet ache of constant connection-is a practice that deepens our understanding of who we are and of the precious life we're given in our time on earth. The deeper we look at listening, the more we find that it has to do with being present, because a commitment to being fully present enables us to listen more to others, to their dreams and pain, to the retelling of their stories. In doing this, we stay close to the energy of all life. The center of our aliveness doesn't care what we achieve or accomplish, only that we stay close to the pulse of what it means to be alive. While the soul's calling is the work we are born to do, the call of the soul is the irrepressible yearning to experience aliveness. It is giving our complete attention to the silence that holds our self that awakens us to both the soul's calling and the call of the soul. By listening to silence, we can be nourished by everything that is larger than us. It helps to think of silence as the connective tissue for all life. This begins by meeting ourselves and opening our minds to silence. For the living Universe can be entered at any time by listening to our inmost self. And each moment is a new place to start, no matter how overwhelmed we might feel. Listening helps us find our place as a living part in a living Universe. Listening helps us discover our relationship to all that supports us in life. The wave would not exist if not for the reach of the ocean that lifts it, and the mountain would not exist if not for the steadfastness of the earth that supports it. Listening is an animating process by which we feel and understand the moment we are in, repeatedly connecting the inner world with the world around us, letting one inform the other.Īll of this helps us hear who we are because our identity and the reach of our gifts can only be known in relationship. In a daily way, listening is being present enough to hear the One in the many and the many in the One. These three friendships-the work of being, the work of being human and the work of love-frame the journey. ![]() We need to stay loyal to these three friendships if we have any hope of living an awakened life. And our friendship with each other opens us to the wisdom of care. Our friendship with experience opens us to the wisdom of life on earth. Our friendship with everything larger than us opens us to the wisdom of Source. Yet how do we inhabit these connections and find our way in the world? By listening our way into lifelong friendships with everything larger than us, with our life of experience and with each other. This is the work of reverence: to stay vital and alive by listening with an open heart. It enlivens the heart the way breathing enlivens the lungs. Listening is the doorway to everything that matters. But why listen at all? Because listening stitches the world together. ![]() In real ways, we're invited each day to slow down and listen. And though we can always learn from others, listening is not a shortcut, but a way to embody the one life we're given, a way to personalize the practice of being human. When we dare to quiet the patterns of our past, everything starts to reveal its kinship and share its aliveness. When we dare to quiet our minds and all the thoughts we inherit, the differences between us move back, and the things we have in common move forward. ![]() In truth, listening is the first step to peace. Each of us is by turns a novice and a master-until the next difficulty or joy undoes us. Unpredictable as life itself, the practice of listening is one of the most mysterious, luminous and challenging art forms on earth. With each trouble that stalls us and each wonder that lifts us, we're asked to put down our conclusions and feel and think anew. Listening is a personal pilgrimage that takes time and a willingness to lean into life.
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