I am posting these words from Thich Nhat Hanh in case you find them helpful. The angels say, "Often we want to blame other people or the world for our unhappiness. When we look deeper, we understand that we cause our unhappiness. We cause our unhappiness when we are not present in our life. When we do not show up to take care of our life, we give permission to someone else to do it for us. We give unconscious thoughts permission to run our life.
And the angels say, "When we speak without conscious thought, without empathy, without considering another person’s feelings, we are like someone throwing a ball repeatedly against a wall — we might be enjoying it, but does the wall?"
empathy:
1. the quality or process of entering fully through imagination into another's feelings or motives, into the meaning of a work of art, or the like.
2. the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
And the angels say, "When we speak without conscious thought, without empathy, without considering another person’s feelings, we are like someone throwing a ball repeatedly against a wall — we might be enjoying it, but does the wall?"
empathy:
1. the quality or process of entering fully through imagination into another's feelings or motives, into the meaning of a work of art, or the like.
2. the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
Thich Nhat Hanh has such humor and humility. I giggled at "how the wall must feel". Recently be observing my voice quality and the emotion I project. I have been watching others who handle communication well with openess, directness yet gentleness. This must be because they are secure and not coming from ego. My heart feels warm; I appreciate and learn from them.
ReplyDeleteYes, others are our teachers. Lately, I, also, have become more aware of my voice, how it changes with different people and situations -- asking myself, what is the best and most comfortable tone of voice for me? How do others hear my voice? I watch how the mechanical nature of the false self takes over and expresses itself -- instead of allowing my True Voice to speak. Thanks for sharing, Debra. I appreciate it.
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