To Respond is to Respect Yourself

This was written in 2002 in response to an experience where academics don’t answer students unless it is directly related to the course. Having been in business many years I was surprised to find this behaviour. At a university I would expect great discourse, discussion and a community emerging through speaking openly, what I discovered was suppression, unexpressed communication and power dynamics, it was very interesting.

To really communicate requires listening to hear, not to answer. Every word makes a difference and defines who you are. The power of communication opens democracy and the ability to explore new ideas and grow in ones thinking and feeling. This expands intelligence on an emotional level and intellectual. As these twins unite, we find new pathways to higher awareness and unity.

RESPOND RESPOND RESPECT

If you want to create a better world,
Then sign your name with respect,
If someone writes to you,
Do not greet it with neglect,
So many communications,
Disappear into the cybernet,
Never caught,
Never returned,
Just silence
Is learned.

Talking is not communication,
To hear is not to listen,
Treat all as one,
Be light and have some fun,
But if you want to be the change,
You will need to change some habits,
Respond, respond, respect,
The student in their role,
For in truth they are not a student,
But a destiny to be shaped,
It needs to be guided sensitively,
To be guided gently,
For what you take away,
Makes small,
What you give enlargens,
And what you brighten,
Enlightens,
So let us each,
Think more deeply of our speech,
Let us unfurl the sails,
Respond to those emails,
For there are many Einsteins and Eleanor Roosevelts,
Waiting to be discovered,
Lets not ignore them,
We want them uncovered.

The new world is of expansion,
It is a consciousness a new,
It is a slowing down and taking in,
It is a reflection of contemplation,
That each choice we make,
Is a decision about the future,
And the direction we all take,
The smallest is the largest,
And the largest is so small,
It is the inconsequential matters,
Which fuel the rising fall,
So make the difference,
And be love and compassion,
And watch the world change,
On the wave of passion.