I have learned as much about writing about my people by listening to blues and jazz and spirituals as I read more

I have learned as much about writing about my people by listening to blues and jazz and spirituals as I have by reading novels.

It is the province of knowledge to speak And it is the privilege of wisdom to listen. -Oliver Wendell Holmes.

It is the province of knowledge to speak And it is the privilege of wisdom to listen. -Oliver Wendell Holmes.

I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.

I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.

Listen or thy tongue will keep thee deaf. -Native American.

Listen or thy tongue will keep thee deaf. -Native American.

Doubt yourself and you doubt everything you see. Judge yourself and you see judges everywhere. But if you listen to read more

Doubt yourself and you doubt everything you see. Judge yourself and you see judges everywhere. But if you listen to the sound of your own voice, you can rise above doubt and judgment. And you can see forever. -Nancy Kerrigan.

The wise old owl lived in an oak; The more he saw the less he spoke; The less he spoke read more

The wise old owl lived in an oak; The more he saw the less he spoke; The less he spoke the more he heard: Why can't we all be like that bird? -Edward H. Richards.

An essential part of true listening is the discipline of bracketing, the temporary giving up or setting aside of one's read more

An essential part of true listening is the discipline of bracketing, the temporary giving up or setting aside of one's own prejudices, frames of reference and desires so as to experience as far as possible the speaker's world from the inside, step in inside his or her shoes. This unification of speaker and listener is actually and extension and enlargement of ourselves, and new knowledge is always gained from this. Moreover, since true listening involves bracketing, a setting aside of the self, it also temporarily involves a total acceptance of the other. Sensing this acceptance, the speaker will fell less and less vulnerable and more and more inclined to open up the inner recesses of his or her mind to the listener. As this happens, speaker and listener begin to appreciate each other more and more, and the duet dance of love is begun again. -M. Scott Peck.

A good listener tries to understand what the other person is saying. In the end he may disagree sharply, but read more

A good listener tries to understand what the other person is saying. In the end he may disagree sharply, but because he disagrees, he wants to know exactly what it is he is disagreeing with.

The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention.

The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention.