Listening vs. Hearing

So I was talking to my sister, Aislinn, the other day, who I keep trying to convince should blog. She's got five kids, so plenty of fun stories to share. Since she hasn't yet taken my advice ("I'm too busy to blog!"), I will take the liberty of passing on an amusing tale she told me.

Declan turned two in November and is currently in the midst of potty-training. Overall, going pretty well. As Aislinn was diligently preparing Primary sharing time for Sunday, Declan was hovering about, chattering away in two-year-old talk. She heard him say, "pee pee occa baw?," and did the mom version of smile and nod. The next thing she hears is the unmistakable splutter of pee hitting a soccer ball. "Declan!" she screeched, and (the kiddo definitely deserves some credit here) he stops mid-stream, looking at her in confusion. She did, after all, give him permission. "Pee pee pawwy?" he asks, resigned to the fact that she will indeed make him finish in the potty.

Amazingly, he also took the time to get a towel and wipe off the soccer ball before continuing on to the bathroom and finishing up the job. What control! I know very few people who can start and stop so decisively...not that I have actually looked for people who could, or brought this up in conversations...

Anyway, the importance of actually listening as opposed to merely hearing cannot be stressed enough. (And, if Aislinn had a blog, she could defend her decision to not pay 100% attention when she heard the words "pee pee" from a two-year-old ;)