Once you start to enter into a negative thought loop, I’ve found that you’re not only thinking negatively, you’re then more susceptible to begin listening in a negative way. How you respond to stress is the result of a complex, nuanced knot of long-held narratives, belief systems, and ideologies that have shaped your experiences and ultimately– how you may come to view yourself.

Someone’s well intentioned compliment may unintentionally come off as a slap in the face if it happens to hit on a core insecurity or wound more deeply rooted in trauma. A friend sharing an experience could get taken as a personal jab if there’s a difference in lifestyle and values. Someone else’s dreams could seem like a threat when you’re not going after your own. The list goes on.

The Spirit reminded me that this is the difference between listening and hearing. That there’s one distinct letter delineates the difference between whether we’re hearing with an open heart or merely listening from a heart that is bleeding and still healing.

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