Developing new skills

Or refining old ones? Nancy W. and I were talking at dinner recently about some changes we are making in our day to day existence, some of them almost unnoticeable. One thing she has done is put herself on somewhat of a budget, taking out a certain amount of cash each month and making it stretch, limiting what she pays for with credit cards, and so on. She has two homes to get sold, one is her father’s and one is her own on the other side of the river. Work is going on to rejuvenate her house and has been for over a year, which is dragging out far too long. Once it’s ready for sale and sold, she will be in a better place, though she is probably doing the right thing for the long haul with her budgeting now.

Another thing Nancy is working on is based upon something she saw on-line, from an unusual source. I am not sure that Willie Nelson is the father of this or if he is simply associated with it now, but the statement was basically thus: “From now on I will focus on what my friend is saying rather than planning what I will say in response.”  This seems simple enough but it is certainly not. Often we can’t wait for our friend to finish their sentence to jump in with what we have to say. Try it sometime---or pay attention to your conversations with others and see how frequently you jump over someone else’s words. Talk about exercise! People like me have trouble with voids so it will take dedicated practice to get better about this, especially when I get so excited when talking with others. Years ago I mentored a young lady who often did not have her listening ears on. My counsel to her would usually be to: “Listen with your mouth closed”. Willie Nelson’s got nothin’ on me! And, I must take my own counsel to heart!