I had an interesting little lesson in communication today.  Romantically speaking, my daughter is having a somewhat turbulent time of it at present, .  My eagle-eyed spouse noticed that a)  A few days ago, she had removed the ring her chap had given her  and  b) yesterday it was back on her finger. 

Today we were chatting to a neighbour and friend of the family, who when my wife mentioned the ring, said “Yes, I noticed that too…”  Clearly this simple little act communicated volumes to these ladies but I suspect would have gone unnoticed by most trouser-wearing members of the species. 

It is a really interesting example of how our actions communicate our feelings and inner state.  Communication is so much more than what we say and all those silly bits of ‘corporate speak’.  If we open our eyes, if we really listen, it is amazing how much we can pick-up.  At the same time everything we do is communicating with those around us.  This is why it is such a minefield, as we often say one thing but do another.  In order to understand someone we have to ‘listen’ with much more than just our ears.

“It seemed rather incongruous that in a society of super sophisticated communication, we often suffer from a shortage of listeners.”   Erma Bombeck

“After all, when you come right down to it, how many people speak the same language even when they speak the same language?”   Russell Hoban