365 Inspirations—161: Listening

“A loving silence often has far more power to heal and to connect than the most well-intentioned words.”—Rachel Naomi Remen

I'm a storyteller by nature. All my family members love to tell stories. When we all get together, there's not a whole lot of listening going on.

So it's no surprise that listening is not my best trait, but I will say that it is one I'm developing and it's been so rewarding to be acquiring this important skill that so few of us have.

It's the end of quarter at school and so much is going on. There really isn't much time to do anything, let alone listen.

But in spite of the end of quarter frenzy that is happening right now at school, I found myself listening a lot today.

Today, while meeting the students individually to talk over their final tests and get them registered for their classes this summer, I found myself doing more listening than speaking.

One quiet Vietnamese woman, who hadn't spoken much all quarter, suddenly found the opportunity to open up to me in our meeting today. She was my last appointment for the afternoon and it was 6:00pm. I was sure I'd be out of there in 10 minutes and was daydreaming of getting something to eat before my next long two hours of class.

But something happened.

While registering this student, I felt she had something she really wanted to say. I felt that she may not have anyone to share her thoughts with—that her life consisted of working long hours and taking care of her family.

In those extra 30 minutes that I sat across from this woman listening, I felt her heaviness and her pain. I heard about her struggles of escaping her country and the loss of people she loved. I felt her sadness, but I also felt her relief of finally being able to let this heaviness out.

I was listening.

I was giving this woman a chance to speak.

I provided her a comfortable space to open up.

I realized that so many of us are often so busy with our own agendas that we barely have time to really listen to others. What I realized today is that if you let a little space surround your life and the people in your life, if you really choose to listen, then you can learn so much.

I felt a deep gratitude that this woman took me away from my "list" and gave me the opportunity to tune in and hear what she had to say.

I realize that we are all connected and what affects one person, place or thing, affects everything else. Sometimes our busyness to move on to the next thing or the next story or even the next word causes us to miss everything that is right here in front of us, if we'd only listen.

Are you a good listener?

365 Inspirations—28: Sharing

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.'” ―Erma Bombeck

I believe we are all here for a reason and each and every one of us has something to share or offer. You may not believe it, but you have a gift or gift(s). There's only one of you and only you can do things the way you do them.

I decided it was high time to offer something new to world. I have had my blog here since 2009. In 2010 I blogged lessons for 365 days, in 2011 I did weekly lessons and in 2012 my book, Lessons from the Monk I Married, was born and I went on a east and west coast tour with my husband and blogged about the experience. Now I'm offering 365 Inspirations for 2013. Not an easy task, but I get so much inspiration from sharing with others and discovering others gifts and talents.

Blogging every single day takes time and effort, but I'm committed to this opening and this sharing. Recently I felt like I wanted to offer more. I love how easy it is to connect via computer with access to blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc., but I've recently felt like I want to share what I have learned through more of a personal relationship.

I don't know if you noticed, but I added new tabs to my blog. I should have done it months ago, but I was a bit fearful. I hesitated a long time and finally took the afternoon and added all the information above that I've wanted to add for months, but was afraid to do for whatever reason.

In Retreats and Classes, I'm currently offering a new class called Discover Your Passion and Live an Authentic Life. You can read all about it in this section. All of my writing has been about finding the inspirational all around me and discovering my true path. My blogging journey has lead me to an agent, a publisher and a host of other amazing writers and bloggers. I could never have dreamed of this when I started my journey here. Blogging helped me let go of so much fear and has opened doors to so many interesting and new things in my life. I'm ready to share that and to help others move past fear and into living fully and authentically, on whatever path one chooses.

So if you are ready to take a leap of faith, please join me on this journey here or by taking my newly offered series of classes! I can't wait to see what life has in store for you!

Do you have any special talents or gifts? What are they? Do you believe you have something to share with others? What is it?