There is a child that exists in all of us. For some, this little boy or girl is buried alive under years of pain and abuse. As we uncover the child spirit, we experience the emotions, the thoughts and even the behaviors that have been repressed for decades. Unless at some point we are able to embrace our inner child at whatever age and stage it shows itself to us, we will re-enact childhood events in some very destructive and unconscious ways. Yet through this courageous work we find the pathway to joy, serenity and wholeness.
Listening is being silent with another person in an active way. It is silently bearing with another person. Some people are silent, but they are not open and active. They are either asleep or dead within themselves. The true listener is one who is quiet and yet sensitive toward another person, open and active, receptive and alive. Listening is participating in another life in a most creative and powerful way. It is neither coercive nor pushy. Rather, it is bearing one another's burdens.