The Lost Art Of Listening

Hearing>Listening

Listening is a lost art.

I don’t have the data to prove that the world was once rife with good listeners, but I know they’re currently in high demand. It’s not hard to figure out why.

In a modern world where we neurotically check the devices in our hands for the next ping–-deciding whether to answer a text, look at a meme, or read about the trials and tribulations of Pete Davidson–-the idea of actually listening to another human seems to require a zen-like state of self-awareness.

We listen. But how often do we HEAR?

I noticed something one day when I was out walking on the B&A Trail. I was looking in front of me, but I wasn’t actually SEEING what was going on. I was too busy listening to the stories in my head, which seamlessly race from one pointless scenario to the next. “That guy was a dick…I hope the Orioles win tonight…I shouldn’t have eaten that…I need to text her back…I deserve a new guitar.” I was out walking in nature, but I was really trapped in the swirling tempest of my own mind. So I tried an experiment.

I decided to actually look at the trees, and not just in a peripheral way. I looked at the leaves on the trees intently–and the bark, and the roots going into the ground. I focused on the finest details, and all of a sudden, the…