Listening To Understand

Emotional awareness is like walking through the forest.

You start by noticing your own steps,

The pressure in your chest,

The thoughts playing on repeat.

You don't judge.

You just notice.

Then you begin to hear the world around you,

A bird calling,

The wind shifting,

Someone you love feeling distant or overwhelmed.

You listen,

Not to fix but to understand.

Balancing awareness of yourself and others isn't about perfect harmony.

It's about presence.

It's about pause.

Letting your emotions rise and settle.

Letting your breath rise and settle.

And in that stillness,

You become the calm in the room,

The clear channel,

The grounded one who leads not by force but by listening.