Listening

It is sometimes amazing to me how almost impossible it is to convey things to people, primarily because of their inability to listen which is another way of saying their complete self-absorption. The so-called self is a bundle of ideas which act as a barrier. It's full of identifications and doctrine, and is a distraction from real attention. But what it means in daily life, in terms of what I said at the outset, is that people don't listen. This I've seen since I was a child. It's bad when it's your parent, some of you know this. But it's even worse when it's a whole town. Eventually, you stop talking. They claim they really want you to tell them something, really want to know what's on your mind; talk and find out. It aint so. Even worse for someone like me who won't keep it shallow and simplistic. The irony is, for those who have their identity wrapped up in this town, they really don't want to hear you criticize the town. They'll even fool themselves into thinking the facts you state aren't true. But I moved away for awhile, which just confirmed what I was already thinking about this town: That there are other places where the people are not uptight (by that I mean not prejudice and pretentious) and they don't pay you shit wages. Of course, I'm usually talking to people who have advantages in this town, of course they like it. Again, self-absorption. Hint: Other people exist.