I COULD BE WRONG
Friday, Mar. 13, 2020
When someone, or a package, arrives – we greet them, accept it, smile, and say hello. We say “goodie-goodie,” or something like that, because we anticipate and celebrate our visitor, the new arrival.
Some things don’t show up that way.
Like awareness.
Like understanding.
An ah+ha moment, that epiphany.
Indeed, things arrive when they arrive.
Some can be predicted, like a friend coming for dinner, like delivery of something you ordered.
Others cannot be predicted (some will say, “You should have seen that coming.”) when someone reacts adversely to something we say or do.
That comes in the form of reaction, or silence, and those are rarely indicative of the same things.
One tells you exactly why you pleased, or displeased, someone else.
The other, a mystery of confusion and angst.
Things happen, how people react to something – what they say, what we say, what they say in reply – and we didn’t know or anticipate what has now arrived.
What do you say?
Or do you say nothing?
Silence is a response.
Someone I was cultivating a relationship with, responded politely but firmly to my request to keep the conversation going. She wrote, “Don’t mistake silence for rejection.” …
It’s been nearly three years, which is a long silence. I don’t think I’m confused about that any longer.
People do, for the most part, what they’ve made up their minds to do. If they are going to smile, say thank you, show-up, or punch you in the nose – those are messages that arrive.
Silence is never a message, apparent or otherwise, so I’ve been told by the world.
I could be wrong.
Someone will have to tell me.
Reader feedback:
I am frequently surprised about how much I am learning and still need to learn, about myself, about everything, RH, Calgary, AB/from Bradenton, FL
Dear Work in Progress, Aren’t we all? Trouble is some have forgotten and have stopped working? I once was one of those.;) . My yoga teacher Sarah once talked about the difference between limits and boundaries. She described limits as the space between comfort and your boundary. The place where you might stretch just beyond. As your limits become comforts, your boundaries shift. What do you think of that? , GB, Waukesha, WI
We need to learn the signs, AG, Cancun, Mex.
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