Local HEROES Clean Water

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34 - www.westcountygazette.com - 1/15/09
Listening 2ChildrenBy Sharon Ann Wikoffneways@pon.net • (707) 543-6355Listening 2 Children…of All Ages!After I wrote the last article for theGazette I pondered, “What should thefocus be for my column in the NewYear”? Ideas came and went! Then asDecember came to a close and the NewYear rolled around, I continued mythought process. I wanted somethingNEW… something DIFFERENT…something to catch everyone’s attention.Several subject entered my mind but nodecision was made! My considerationscontinued.Life continued! Day after day,situations arose where the absoluten e c e s s i t y f o r “ L I S T E N I N G 2CHILDREN” arose. I was reminded timeand time again about the importance ofthe act of LISTENING!• Listening to the infant as her eyesfocus on the first rain!• Listening to the four-year oldfeeling snow for the first time!• Listening to the child who justlearned to ride her bike!• Listening to the crying toddler whojust had his ice cream fall!• Listening to the young women whohas just fallen in love!• Listening to the teen that just losthis job!Opportunities arise around us allthe time where listening is needed!However, in this busy busy world,sometimes, the act of listening is notgiven the importance that it deserves.Listening deepens the connectionbetween two people greatly! Listeningbonds people together in miraculousways. When two people take the timeto be in conversation, sharing andtalking, a synergy develops that isso special. Conversations cannot behurried. Well, they can be hurried, butif one wants the delight and pleasureand closeness that comes from listening,then conversations should be given thetime they deserve!When listening doesn’t take place,the person not listened to may end upholding on to un-processed thoughtsand feelings. When such thoughtsbuild up time after time, they can causeemotional upsets. I’ve seen this happentime and time again in classrooms.Teachers wonder WHY is this childacting out? Nine times out of ten whenI see an incident that has happenedwhere a child is upset, I’ve been ableto trace the ‘cause’ back to somethingthat happened that was not addressed.The importance of listening begins atbirth and continues into adulthood andbeyond!Over the past months I’ve had themarvelous experience of having one ofmy children ‘fall in love’! She’s over 30and has been SO patient in dating andfinding Mr. Right. And now everythingis falling into place! Although she’sknown him for 3 years, they were notserious until recently. Then they becamea couple! Almost immediately he wasoffered a fabulous work promotion butit entailed a move to another state! ABIG decision had to be made! It wasamazing to listen to her talk about allthe conversations they were havingabout the move. At one point, I hadMORE questions than she had answersso I had to sit quietly and wait! Thisreminded me that sometimes, theprocess of listening requires SILENCE!So, silence it was for about 10 days!But tonight, we spent over 90 minuteson the phone discussing their trip nextweek out of state to locate housing andtheir upcoming move. The timingwasn’t great for me, but if I had said noto the call tonight, what I would havelost out on would be irreplaceable! Iwould have missed listening to hertalk about what furniture to take, howshe found a matching piece to her wildpurple flowered luggage and the hugesignificance of this time in her life! Yes,listening is crucial to close relationshipswhen our children are 3 months or 30years.It’s never too late to begin listeningagain! And the very act of listeningcan change lives! It can bring peopletogether! And it can create a connectionso strong, so beautiful, so special!AND it can all begin with just 10minutes of listening! I call this the 10Minute Miracle. JUST listen to a lovedone for 10 minutes. Have no agendaother than listening! Listening is amiracle that can last a lifetime!Sharon hosts The VOICE of CHANGEradio programs and more. Details canbe found on her website:www.AuthenticWays.com1/15/09 - www.westcountygazette.com - 35
Page 2 and 3: Dear Readers,New Year’s Day does
Page 4 and 5: ADVERTISERS INDEXActive 23-230 Club
Page 7 and 8: Choosing OptimismBy Vesta Copestake
Page 9 and 10: WATER cont’d from page 1These pro
Page 11 and 12: WORK cont’d from page 10In this c
Page 13 and 14: I’M A WHALEby Bethany ArgisleWe
Page 15 and 16: School Garden NetworkSupports Local
Page 17 and 18: Chinese MedicineBy Marcy Basel •
Page 19 and 20: Business & Community ProfilesA Nexu
Page 21 and 22: Paying AttentionLocal Issues on our
Page 23: Nightingale BreadsTakes FlightBy Be
Page 27 and 28: Shark BaitBy Debra A. Newby, Attorn
Page 29 and 30: Fire Department NewsChristmas Tree
Page 31: Meanwhilein Graton…By HolLynn D
Page 37 and 38: Artist ProfileBy Barbara Shulabshul
Page 39 and 40: New Years ResolutionsHappy New Year
Page 41 and 42: MeetingsJan 15 ~ Russian River Rede
Page 43: BENEFITS:Jan 17 ~ Chautauqua Road S
Page 46 and 47: With our lowwater situation, itwill

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