A reader sent me this graphic:
I love it.
I have a new friend like that. When we hike, sometimes we speak and sometimes we are silent. But we are always communicating.
These friends are a blessing.
People who require explanations are a blessing, too. They force us to get clear. They force us to be specific. There are times when I think my copy editor might understand me too well, because she knows what I mean without a lot of explanation. I can jump from A to D and she’s right there with me. At times, that keeps us from recognizing that some of my readers need me to take them from A to B to C to D. It can be frustrating when I think my point is crystal clear and my reader doesn’t get it – but it is clarifying, too.
My husband is a linear thinker and asks to be walked through many of my Quantum Leaps. That’s changing, though. He’s making leaps of his own. I’m loving that, but will need to keep plenty of linear thinkers in my orbit for… not a reality check… but a linear reality check.
The last Chapter in my PowerPhrases book says, “The purpose of words is to create silence.”
The easy silence of everything that needed to be said having been said. The easy silence of communication without words.
I just glanced at my answering machine and saw my new friend left a message. She just called to say, “Thank you for sharing your big heart.” No other purpose. She was specific about what I had done that touched her. Her specifics augment her appreciation. Her few words augment our sweet silence. She and the reader who sent the graphic altered the trajectory of my day.
