Quiet and Clear
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
— Max Ehrmann, The Desiderata
Everyone has a story. Some are beautiful; some are funny. Some are painful and even tragic. Most life stories contain all of these elements in their turn.
As humans, we are storytellers. It’s how we inform one another about who we are and who we want to be. Inherent in the creation of our narrative comes the need for it to be heard. From PhDs to Pinterest, the world is full of references to our need for attention, approval, acceptance, allowing, and affection. Acknowledgement is my abbreviated proxy for this list.
The need to be heard can be powerful and hungry. The need to be known, to have our story acknowledged exists for all of us to greater and lesser degrees. We participate in a never-ending dance of verbal give and take each of us speaking our truths. At our best, we are quiet and clear.
I’ve pondered how the obligation to listen to others extends to tales of ugliness or untruths. In the face of a lie, do we have an obligation to correct the narrative? A wise person once said, “never wrestle with a pig, both of you get dirty and the pig likes it.”
Unwell people make poor choices. Rather than trying to correct another’s story, we simply observe it unfolding. We can focus on our own wellness, our own quiet and clear truth.
I tell you my dreams and while you’re listening to me, I suddenly see them come true. — Robert Goulet, I Talk to the Trees
Our dreams are a different kind of truth, precious gifts of the divine meant to guide us to our higher selves. We can choose a wise tribe to listen to, learn from, and tell our dreams to.
No matter who we are or where we’re from, we all have aspirations. Speaking our truth quietly and clearly helps us to become who we are truly meant to be.
