The Winter of Listening

As the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, I find myself turning inward more often. As nature retreats from its active, full state into a state of rest and quiet, so do I. Winter provides opportunities to move inward towards the places that call for our presence, nourishment, and care. My favorite times in winter are in the early mornings, just before sunrise. The cold crisp air along with the kind of deep silence that only occurs on these winter mornings offer me solace and many opportunities to turn towards and listen to what is inside. This line in David Whyte’s beautiful poem, The Winter of Listening, speaks to me on these mornings: “Inside everyone is a great shout of joy waiting to be born.” What joy is waiting inside of you to be born? Are you open to slowing down, noticing, and listening to what is inside this winter season?

THE WINTER OF LISTENING

by David Whyte

What is precious

inside us does not

care to be known

by the mind

in ways that diminish

its presence.

What we strive for

in perfection

is not what turns us

into the lit angel

we desire.

What disturbs

and then nourishes

has everything

we need.

What we hate

in ourselves

is what we cannot know

in ourselves but

what is true to the pattern

does not need

to be explained.

Inside everyone

is a great shout of joy

waiting to be born.

And

here

in the tumult

of the night

I hear the walnut

above the child’s swing

swaying

its dark limbs

in the wind

and the rain now

come to

beat against my window

and somewhere

in this cold night

of wind and stars

the first whispered

opening of

those hidden

and invisible springs

that uncoil

in the still summer air

each yet

to be imagined

rose.

Written by: Becky Riley Olin, LCPC, MT-BC