This is an excerpt from a note, and I thought it was something I wanted to put here, rather than retype, consider this my point of view on people who don't listen and who really should. If someone you love doesnt listen to you then where is the enjoyment in living. Why are you even there? We all need to be really listened to. Thats it. I think this can apply to almost anyone anytime, you just have to decide if the person is worth something to you then you listen. Goodnight all....

"...when I speak, you often interrupt what I am saying because you think you know where I am going or you make a judgement before i have finished a phrase. Sometimes you are right, but I think its a bad habit you have fallen into, and its not like you. I do it sometimes too but I try not to, I try very consciously.

Is it because you have no interest in what I am saying and you just want to get it over with, or better put...is it because you feel you know the answer, don't want to waste time with words that are unnecessary and you want to just jump right in with the solution? I know how that feels, but it is bad practice even if in the end you did know where it was going. You are not handling a business procedure for maximum efficiency, you are dealing with a human being in which the time invested will yield the greatest return.

From my perspective half the time I am talking about issues or thoughts at work or in my life I just want to speak them through, because in speaking them through I often am able to re evaluate things, and from there I find peace with my thoughts. Sharing my day or these thoughts with you are a way of digesting things that stayed on my mind, or effected me. They are also opportunities for you to get to know things about me, to share ideas, to observe. If you jump in with your feedback too soon, it just frustrates me because I am not talking to get you to solve my problem, I am just talking to share and like you, when I am done talking I will pause.

You know maybe its just as simple as this: people like to feel like they are being listened to.

Like what they are saying is not only interesting (either from an emotional or intellectual point of view) but valuable somehow. Thats how I like to feel when I talk to someone and how I also like to make people feel when they are around me. Even if their words and their issues are not as important, what a person says behind it all, emotionally is often worth listening to. This is my personal opinion and experience.

I think this information is important for our relationship, not because I am telling you how to be, but I am letting you know how I am and what I need, and most importantly what I am looking for when I say I want to talk about my day."

~v.