Language begins with listening.
~ Jeanette Winterson
Observe one side of a conversation you usually interrupt to clarify your view. What happens when the other speaks without your comments?
Listen to the wild and write the experience.
Spend a day tuning into and taming your listening skills. You will discover how this process affects language. Set a time limit of several hours, if a day seems too long.
During the selected period, focus and listen to those around you. Hear conversations without responding with judgment. Keep a notepad with you and write your concerns to what's said to you. Also, keep notes on words and meanings as they float in dialogues around you.
If you feel the urge to speak, say to yourself, "Write it; don't say it." Then write it with vigor.
Smile and do not engage in commentary.
How long can you accomplish your listening and remain in the silence without spoken words? You may discover humor along the way.
Move into another silent adventure.
Discover a place of solitude. Focus on your breath as it moves in and out. Listen to a collage of sounds with full awareness.
At first, you will classify sounds as an airplane, car passing, or bird's chirp. Hear beyond the harshness of garbage trucks and jack hammers. Defining the sound removes you from it. If you concentrate long enough eventually you will let the labels go and notice only the energy beyond noise.
Observe one side of a conversation you usually interrupt to clarify your view. What happens when the other speaks without your comments?
Listen to the wild and write the experience.
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