Devorah Tarrow, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes:
In kitchens, bedrooms, living rooms, spouses have complained, “Where are you?! You haven’t been listening to a word I’m saying!” Also, “You’d rather talk than listen!” Couples despair of this painful situation’s ever changing, and the resulting loneliness and resentment are with them daily.
What will enable real listening to be and thrive in married life will be explained at the Understanding Marriage! class of Saturday, Sep 14th, 11 AM to 12:30 PM. The subject is: “The Art of Listening in Marriage.” The class is open to all women.
Wonderfully practical, lively discussions always take place in these classes, which are taught by Barbara Allen, Meryl Nietsch-Cooperman, and other Aesthetic Realism consultants. In the Sep 14th class, there will be discussion of the following important and kind sentences by Eli Siegel, founder of Aesthetic Realism, from a lecture he gave on the subject:
Right now there are quite a few homes in the New York area where someone says, ‘Something is amiss—I was talking and he/she didn’t seem to be listening to me.’ Since listening is so much a part of life, we should ask: Do I expect anything very much from listening? People do expect a great deal listening to music, but there is another listening that people have pretty much given up on. Listening should be accompanied with comprehension. It’s an artistic, deep, compassionate, and critical thing.
The class will be showing what has not been understood before: the listening with comprehension a woman wants and needs to have begins with her wanting to know and value the world—and this liking of the world is the purpose of marriage itself. Learning that, and learning what “artistic, deep, compassionate, and critical” listening is, enables a woman to listen with fresh ears to her spouse. And this education also enables her to encourage true listening in another—making honest, fresh communication between them a reality!
The fee for the class is $10. For more information, call 212.777.4490.