The Gift of Presence

No judgement. No opinions. No pontificating.

We sat by the fire.  

It's been a long time since he tried to correct me, fix me.  We had learned that it was an exercise of frustration for us both.  It didn't work for either of us.  It did nothing for our relationship.

I slowly began to process all the stuff.  The realities and disappointments of life as we now know it, questions and uncertainties that had been slowly swirling deep inside.

Every once in awhile I'd look from the flickering flames to him.  He was looking right back at me.  Tracking with me.  Hearing me well.

No judgement.  No opinions.  No pontificating. 

I felt validated.  Heard.  Safe to be myself, all kinds of messy, imperfect, and flawed.

HH E

Eyes brimming, I gazed back into the flames and slowly continued my verbal processing.  The sweet Holy Spirit was enlightening and comforting.  And as the tears flowed, sorrow and truth and clarity came tumbling out, all freed up.

I looked back at him and his eyes were welling just a bit.  He was nodding, not necessarily in agreement, but in an empathetic understanding that drew our hearts closer together.

This is what we're all yearning for.  The gift of presence.  The companionship of another who's not afraid of what they'll hear.  Not thinking of how they'll respond or looking at their watch or are otherwise preoccupied.

The art of listening well hasn’t come easy to us. It’s taken a whole lot of years, hurt feelings, misunderstood emotions. But we hung in there and kept trying to figure it out. 48 years later, I think we’re on our way.

The gift of fully being present to another soul.  It's a rare offering indeed.  You know when you're on the receiving end.  And when you're not.

From My Heart to Yours ~
Linda 💜

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👌 Linking up with with longtime pals Paula . Andrew . Joanne . Maree