Listening deeply is not easy for me, especially when I need to really pay attention.
I am a social butterfly when I am around other people, but I also a mild hermit when I am in my Zen. I am at my happiest when I am home cuddled up on the couch with a cup of coffee in hand and a purring cat nearby. Quiet and peaceful is my place of zen.
Something about the simplicity of that warms my heart.
One of the things I need to work on is listening.
I tend to let clutter fill up my head which makes me seem scattered at times. I wonder too, because I have a very strong startle reflex so loud noises bother me. This is probably one of the reasons I don’t like loud noises. If I could fit under the bed, I would be there with the dust bunnies.
To be honest, I will be the first to shut the door when the neighbors get loud, and the first to try and tune you out when you start to babble on and on.
I know, not nice. Even a sassy cat is not always Zen.
So, I have decided that I need to listen more as I turn my ears toward the noise.
How can I be present when I am pressing the mute button on the present moment?
So… ( talking to myself) Are you ready KT?
This is what I will do….
- …turn the music off in the car and listen to the sound of the wheels on pavement.
- …listen more to the sound of nature than the phone, music or tv.
- …meditate with the noise around me.
- …listen more at work.
- …listen to what I don’t want to hear, as I find the melody of present in the mist of chaos.
- …open my doors and windows and listen to the sounds of the neighborhood and the music it makes.
- …removing the duct-tape off my muse and listen to the inspiration they are sharing.
- …listen to the voice of my heart, and less to my thoughts.
- …listen to my cats; meows, purrs and all.
- …listen to the answers on the wind as it spirals around before it brushes my face.
- …be present and pay attention to those who are speaking.
- …listen more to silence and not fight against it.
- …I am going to listen to what scares me.
Can you hear me now Kitty?
Are you listening too?
KT Cat Paws.