I have been missing a lot
Ray Mitchell
"See with your ears and hear with your eyes."
Ken Kesey
Wow! My life is changing! After much deliberation and advice I took the plunge and got a new set of hearing aids. They cost about three times as much as my first brand new car that I bought many years ago. I was unprepared for the result of using the new aids since while I realized that I was having difficulty hearing everything with my former aids I thought I was doing pretty well. Once I put these on it was bad news and good news. The bad news is that my car has started to rattle and make funny noises, not only that all the mechanical clocks in the house have started to constantly go tick tock. But the good news is that I have discovered I had not only missed a lot but often sat back missing what was going on around me.
Sunday was Mother’s day and we were at one of my daughter’s home along with lots of others and for the first time in years I was not sitting in the corner appearing to be the ultimate wet blanket. I heard everyone and found that they were even more interesting than I thought they were. What a great experience, I now can understand why people laugh at something rather than wondering what was so funny. The ambient noises in my world are back, the birds have started singing again, whole sentences are being said and heard. It is wonderful. I now believe that in part we see with our ears.
I have always tried to be the best listener I can be and regularly feedback to folks what I think I hear and sure enough often we need to clarify. I will continue to do that to make sure we both agree on the content but I fully expect it will not be because I did not hear what they said. I honestly feel I will be more functional and will enjoy more of the world around me.
Life is great and it is wondrous when you discover it can even get better. I especially want to thank all of you who have tolerated my failings; maybe I am not as dumb as I am sure I often appeared to be. Please keep joy in your heart and a song on your lips for I am ready to listen. Thanks everyone.
~~~
"I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen."
Ernest Hemingway
~~~
At one point during a game, the coach called one of his 9-year-old baseball players aside and asked, "Do you understand what cooperation is? And....What the word team means?"
The little boy nodded in the affirmative.
"Do you understand that what matters is whether we win or lose together as a team?"
The little boy nodded yes.
"So," the coach continued, "I'm sure you know, when an out is called, you shouldn't argue, curse, attack the umpire, or call him a pecker-head. Do you understand all that?"
Once again the little boy nodded.
He continued, "And when I take you out of the game so another boy gets a chance to play, it's not good sportsmanship to call your coach a "dumb ass" is it?"
Again the little boy nodded.
"Good," said the coach. "Now go over there and explain all that to your grandmother."
~~~
Before resolving to jog five miles a day, visit a cardiologist to have your heart examined, a podiatrist to have your feet examined and a psychiatrist to have your head examined.
~~~
The Michaels family owned a small farm in Canada, just yards away from the North Dakota border. Their land had been the subject of a minor dispute between the United States and Canada for generations. Mrs. Michaels, who had just celebrated her ninetieth birthday, lived on the farm with her son and three grandchildren.
One day, her son came into her room holding a letter. "I just got some news, Mom," he said. "The government has come to an agreement with the people in Washington. They've decided that our land is really part of the United States. We have the right to approve or disapprove of the agreement. What do you think?"
"What do I think?" his mother said. "Jump at it! Call them right now and tell them we accept! I don't think I could stand another one of these Canadian winters!"
~~~
To be able to look back upon one's past life with satisfaction is to live twice.
Marcus Valerius Martial
~~~
She said: Needing to shed a few pounds, my husband and I went on a diet that had specific recipes for each meal of the day. I followed the instructions closely, dividing the finished recipe in half for our individual plates. We felt terrific and thought the diet was wonderful. We never even felt hungry!
But when we realized we were gaining weight and not losing it, I checked the recipes again. There in fine print, it said, "Serves 6."
~~~
Kids: they dance before they learn there is anything that isn't music.
William Stafford
~~~
A man pacing back and forth glanced at his watch and yelled upstairs to his wife, "Honey, are you ready yet?"
Shouting back, the woman replies, "For crying out loud, I've been telling you for the last half hour that I'll be ready in a minute!
~~~
There are two places where you'll never see a clock... in Las Vegas casinos and in Doctors' waiting rooms.
~~~
"Normal" is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work, driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for, in order to get to the job that you need so you can pay for the clothes, car and the house that you leave empty all day in order to afford to live in it. Wanna be normal??
~~~
I'm addicted to placebos. I'd give them up, but it wouldn' make any difference.
Steven Wright
~~~
Jack hadn't been to a class reunion in decades. When he walked into this latest one, he thought he recognized a woman over in the corner, so he approached her and extended his hand in greeting, saying,
"You look like Helen Brown."
"Well," the woman snapped back, "you don't look so great in blue either!"
~~~
“The art of conversation is the art of hearing as well as of being heard.”
William Hazlitt
~~~
Stay well, do good work, and have fun.
Ray Mitchell
Indianapolis, Indiana
Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.
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