Wednesday, April 22, 2009

What did you hear?

I'm amazed by how differently my wife and I see the same thing--the detail, the nuance that she sees compared to what I see. The same thing is true for hearing. If a spouse is already hurt, they will hear whatever is said through the filter of that hurt.

There's a fascinating scene in the Chronicles of Narnia. Four humans (Digory, Polly, Uncle Andrew, and Frank the Cabby) and one very sad Witch (Jadis) watch as Aslan sings the new world of Narnia into existence. After creation, the animals begin to speak, the human witnesses are amazed to find that they can understand them. Everyone, that is, except Uncle Andrew. All he can hear is barkings, howlings, and noise. Why? Why wasn’t Uncle Andrew able to understand like everyone else?

Who you are determines what you hear.

This is why people hear different things in the same speech.
"I think he's for change." "I think he's against it."
In music:
"Jazz music is beautiful." "Jazz is bunch of chaos."

Who you are determines what you hear. Maybe the issue isn't your spouse, your pastor, your friend, maybe it's inside.

No comments: