Dog Bites and Bee Stings

Around seven this evening, I left my apartment to walk around the block twice. It was windy, which added to my enjoyment. I wore a big winter coat and tucked my hands up into the sleeves. Doing so made me feel like a little kid wearing an oversized coat, which made me smile. I looked down to the sidewalk and chuckled at my sleeve’s shadow with missing hands. I lowered my shoulders and let go of the tension I had been holding in. 

I’ve had family on my mind tonight. It has long been a feeling of mine that my wishes and words are not heard, that I don’t get through to people. On this evening’s walk, with my hands up my sleeves, my shoulders lowered, and a lightness in my spirit, the thought hit me that maybe I do get through to people, but they choose to ignore what I say. I would call it a realization, but that would imply that what I thought was in fact true, and I’m not positive of that. Not every one of my wishes need to be granted, but we all want to be heard in order to feel respected and wanted in a given group. I think of myself as a good listener and perhaps because of that, I put a lot of value in others being good listeners themselves. I am a 49er, heading west to the gold rush, to find the rare element that is a good listener.