Listen

“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common – this is my symphony.” — William Henry Channing

When listening not with the ear but with the spirit, we enter into supreme purity. — Deng Ming-Dao, 365 Tao

“One friend, one person who is truly understanding, who takes the trouble to listen to us as we consider our problems, can change our whole outlook on the work.” — Elton Mayo

“We spend most of our time and energy in a kind of horizontal thinking. We move along the surface of things… but there are times when we stop. We sit sill. We lose ourselves in a pile of leaves or its memory. We listen and breezes from a whole other world begin to whisper.” — James Carroll

“In the short time we are here, we should listen to our own voices and follow our own hearts. Why not be free and live your own life? Why follow other people’s rules and live to please others? ” -– Yang Chu , Lieh Tzu

“Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story” — Max Ehrman

“The more faithfully you listen to the voices within you, the better you will hear what is sounding outside.” — Dag Hammarskjold

“Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard.” — Anne Sexton

“Every person I work with knows something better than me. My job is to listen long enough to find it and use it.” — Jack Nichols

“You seldom listen to me, and when you do you don’t hear, and when you do hear you hear wrong, and even when you hear right you change it so fast that it’s never the same.” — Marjorie Kellogg

“I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.”
— Ernest Hemingway

“Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts. Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me… Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.” –Shel Silverstein

I had a shirt I wore for a long time with the Chinese character for “listen” on it. Only a few people recognized it and knew what it meant, but it was a reminder to me whenever I wore it to just shut up and listen to what others had to say. So, today is for listening. What do you have to say?