Listen
Can we listen?
Can we roll
down the volume
in our minds
flick off
ego
plant ourselves
firm
and listen?
Cause there’s a 22 year old
hanging from the beams
of her bedroom
on a Saturday night
There are children
too afraid
to speak
Can we hear their silence?
There hands twitiching
to move
to swipe away the adult
touching
There are
boys strapping bombs
to their bellies
Can we hear them?
See them?
There are partners
walking away
can you hear
the slap of slippers
Click of a door
start of an engine?
There are colleagues
in conflict
words flying
everywhere
but the ears
of those
they struggle with
Can you hear their
predetermined
judgements
assumptions
analyses
flung about
mindlessly?
There are students
cursing
fighting
quitting
can you hear the
scrape of gates closing?
Are we listening?
What’s going on
when we think
we’re listening?
Or are we
just
formulating
judging
negating
floating
away
with our
own need
to be heard
to be right?
What if we commit
to working
on this skill
the skill of listening
practice routinely
like yoga
or writing
or running
or playing the flute?
What if we cultivate
nurture
exercise daily
the kind of listening
that does not
involve us?
What if we
place our attention
on the other
another
and open
ourselves
up
without
anywhere
to go
to say
to comment
to advise
to direct?
What if we simply
said
please go on
tell me more…