Wise Words

Have any of you noticed how extremely difficult it is to get someone's full, undivided attention? Not only that, but if and when you get it, how in the world do you retain it - even if just for five minutes?!

In this day & age of smartphones, people are basically walking around totally and completely preoccupied, not even allowing for an opportunity to stop and smile, let alone mumble a syllable, "Hi." And eye contact...wait, what's that?

I'm not going to bash on our techy generation. I'm always texting or playing blocks or reading facebook or taking pics or downloading maps or bar scanning codes just for fun. But gosh, sometimes enough is just enough. It steals life. Literally. Even mine. I've had to put my phone/computer/game system/tv/mp3 player/movie player down and just leave it alone. Why? Because I was investing more time in an electronic device than I was in my human family. And, so are most other people in our world, today. Not anymore, not for me.

When was the last time you had a real conversation with someone? I'm not referring to small talk-- "What do you do?" "How are you?" "Where do you live?" --Anyone can be great at that. But really listening to someone WITHOUT having an alterior motive - something to sell, a reason to recruit or obtain some kind of kickback - how often do we find that anymore? Not often at all. In fact, it's a rare occurence. And when you DO find it, it's rather refreshing! :) Are you a good listener?

I have an awesome friend who is one of these rare finds. He listens. When he's with you, he's with you. He makes that bold eye contact, and every word spoken is heartfelt and sincere. You walk away feeling like you're the only person in his world. I wish I could be more like him. I wish there were more of "hims" around.

So today, I'm signing off with more chunks of goodness that I took away from Tuesdays with Morrie. I hope you let the words soak in a little bit and penetrate your soul like they have mine.

"Invest in the human family. Invest in people. Build a little community of those you love and who love you."

"In the beginning of life, when we are infants, we need others to survive. And at the end of life, when we become helpless, we need others to survive. But here's the secret: in between, we need others, as well."

"I believe in being fully present. That means you should be with the person you're with. When I'm talking to you now, I try to keep focused only on what is going on between us. I am not thinking of what's coming up this Friday. I am not thinking of a tv show or about what medications I take. I am talking to you. I am thinking about you."

xoxo,
Sarah