I believe in the power of listening.

I believe that listening can heal. That donating a few minutes of my time, can improve another's entire day.

Many days you can find me wandering the dog park with a local shelter dog. The rainbow of faces I see and people I meet is quite extraordinary and I am still sometimes shocked by the colorful people around me. But, there are two faces I still remember though more than a year has gone by.

One day I was walking around the park when a man shuffled in with his dog. He lowered himself onto a bench, clutching his book in his lap. I walked on thinking not to disturb his reading. On my next pass, he was still sitting there gripping his unopened book. I stopped and said “hi”. After some mundane talk of weather and dogs, he suddenly started talking about the divorce he was currently going through. His wife was leaving him and he had to move out, find a new place, and leave behind his beloved dogs. At first I was shocked, thinking to myself, “Why is this complete stranger telling me his life's problems?”, but I stood there and listened, nodding when appropriate, and making vague noises of sympathy when needed. I then resumed my walk around the park, putting the occurrence out of my mind. Only later, when that solitary man left the park, I thought his face didn't look as drawn and his shoulders didn't look to be bowed by some unseen weight.

It was after this scene that I started realizing that my listening could be a gift to others. By telling another their story or the hurdles they are facing, people could unload some of the burden that they continuously carry on their shoulders and not feel so alone in world.

A few months after coming to this conclusion, I was once again at the dog park, when faced with another man needing to find solace in sharing his story. He was a regular at the park for some time and I would usually stop and say hi and spend a few minutes talking with him. Then one day, after I hadn't seen him in weeks, I went over and asked how he was doing. Rather than the generic response, he told me that he had been diagnosed with cancer and that it was terminal. He told me of his fears for his daughter and her family and the dog that was his companion, and what would become of them when he passed away. There were no words that I could say that would have eased his emotional pain, so I just sat there and listened. The next week when I saw him again, and he talked to me about his cancer treatment. This went on for a couple months. I would see him come back weaker and paler than the week before, and it was hard to watch since this was a former sheriff, a big bear of a man, with an even bigger heart. Sometimes he would say that he recently had a treatment, and then just sit in silence. I found that listening to another's silence sometimes says more than any fancy wording ever could.

These two people helped show me the power of listening. Not only can I help ease another's troubles, but I am also given a chance to grow and learn. After hearing what the people who live around me are dealing with, I find that my connection with humanity is so much deeper. I'm no longer isolated in this overwhelming world, but know there are other's out there just trying to get through the day. My problems are put into focus whenever I think on what others are going through.

Before these occurrences, I would talk to my family and friends about anything that was bothering me and I thought nothing of it. But, it took two strangers telling me their stories before I truly realized the power in listening.