I've never been a very good listener. I can be, if I try really, really hard, but it doesn't seem to come naturally for me to sit and listen intently for more than 15 minutes. This is not something that I am proud of or okay with. I believe that, if we treasure our relationships, we must be willing and able to listen to the people around us with intentionality. It is for that reason that I have decided to "read" some of my books for my yearly goal, on CD. The public library here has plenty of young adult books recorded on CD and I spend enough time in my car that I have the time to listen to a few this year.
Last night, I drove to Wamego to watch my brother and cousin play basketball, and decided to try it out. I started listening to Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli and boy, did I have a hard time paying attention. Luckily, the CD is set up in tracks that are divided by chapters, so it was very easy to skip back to the beginning of the chapter. I have always been a confident reader, but listening. . . This could take some work.