Deep Listening
by Starcat

This is the time of the year when nature seems to pause. The leaves have all fallen from the trees, the ground is frozen, and the skies have that wintry look. The days are short. After the snow falls, silence spreads over the land. At night, when the clouds have blown away, you can see a sparkling wonderland of stars. It seems as if the earth itself is waiting, and listening.

Stop what you are doing. Turn off the music, the television, the laptop, the phone. Light a candle. It’s time to turn inward, like the trees, and listen. Breathe and relax. Become quiet, and listen to what your heart is whispering. Get clear, and feel your own emotions flowing. Go deeper, and sense your connection to the whole.

How often do you take the time to listen to yourself? Not the chattering voices that worry about how your hair looks, or what’s for dinner, or how you’ll pay the mortgage. Your deeper self is waiting. Its voice is quiet and unassuming, and it speaks with gentleness and love, and perhaps a certain longing. What is your inner wisdom? What are your most cherished desires?

We are often taught to listen to everyone but ourselves. Advice columns, how-to articles, advertisements – we are surrounded by wisdom that is not our own. It doesn’t speak our truths for us, but makes us feel inadequate to the task of life. It asks you how young you look, how tidy your house is, how much money is in your bank account. The soul’s voice is lost in the chaos. This is your moment. Now is the time to turn inward, to daydream with the sleeping trees, to deeply listen, and to rediscover what your life truly means to you. Be still, and listen.