[Redway]

The fact that openly reflective listening, and being able to relate with someone’s experiences when they’re venting or offloading a little, isn’t always regarded as highly as quieter listening. Sometimes it’s nice for someone to directly relate with you rather than just keep the verbiage going with lots of generic “Uh-huh”-s. There’s a difference between making it all about yourself and just offering a bit of gentle, open reflection in a conversation.

As reserved as I am, I’m still a sucker for a two-sided conversation, even when the other person’s doing more listening. I think for a lot of people it’s about quietly craving reciprocity amidst being reflective or however socially mellowed down your disposition is. You still want the other person to be tuned in, and you need words to fill in the blanks. Some of us are more wired towards wanting that mutuality and more direct two-sidedness in at-least certain convos than others, innit.

Likewise for sympathy not always being regarded as highly in value as empathy. Both are incredibly important attributes for at-least some people in this world to be capable of. And that’s something I feel like the likes of even Samaritans, as great as they are otherwise, to take more note of.