Tonight's picture was taken in December of 2006. Mattie was four a half years old and by this point totally got Christmas. I can't say he liked decorating but he loved to see the tree, the lights, and the ornaments. His favorite part of the process was assembling his Christmas train around the tree. A Mattie tradition.
Quote of the day: Listening is being able to be changed by the other person. ~ Alan Alda
The necklace was to remind me that one of the gifts I have is my ability to listen to others. But as Alan Alda's quote points out listening enables both the listener and the one being listened to, to experience change. The change doesn't go just one way. As I believe every social interaction evokes an outcome, it causes us to pause, to absorb what is being said, and to process it and gain insight. The insight again goes both ways, as I have found I learn a lot from listening to people's thoughts and feelings, but I also know being the recipient of a kind ear helps me at times move forward.
In any case, today's conversation was fascinating because we had a long discussion about what is a friend and at what point do you just stop the friendship because a connection is no longer positive or mutual. It never dawned on me that some of us (sitting around that table) have different view points about friendship. I am very clear in my mind as to what qualifies a friend. I am not attracted to friends because of their monetary or social status. That doesn't interest me in the least and unfortunately if this is what attracts you to a friend, then I do believe there will be trouble ahead. Because friendship has to be based on substance, core values and principles, and mutual respect. It requires both parties to work on cultivating the friendship as well. If you find that you are working too hard and that a so called friend is not there during your most difficult times, than that should be the first red flag. Either case, you can see it wasn't a light birthday brunch!
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