Quotes About Communication

I've been a teacher at the college level, in composition mostly, and I've been an editor on magazines.

Her mother was fine. Her mother was always fine. Fine was her way of saying she didn't exist.

In Charles Dickens's books I had to admire the way the meanest enemies spoke to each other, with what seemed to me to be the greatest civility.

I have given up on speech with the Rev; there is no use explaining that you have to learn where your pain is. You have to burrow down and find the wound, and if the burden of it is too terrible to shoulder you have to shout it out; you have to shout for help. My trust, even down in that dark place I carry, is that some person will come running. And then finally the way through grief is grieving.

If you keep secrets from your father, to whom can you tell them? If you hide food from your mother, to whom can you give it?

I can tell just by looking at her that she needs to know she can push me and that when she does, I won't crumple. I know the look by now. Submissive women who crave dominance need this from time to time, and Diana's no exception. I've likened it to a blind man finding his way in an unfamiliar room; once he knows where the walls are, his boundaries, he can move more freely.

In poetry's words, life calls to life —Jane Hirshfield

The attitude of neutrality allows grandparents to listen to the teenager without the emotional baggage their parents carry. And if we listen carefully, we may be able to glimpse what the teenager is going through.

Mindful of the boundaries between us and our grown children, we make the effort to take the differences between us less personally

My throat feels hard and swollen, as if bulky words are trying to choke me.

The poet's job is to put into words those feelings we all have that are so deep, so important, and yet so difficult to name, to tell the truth in such a beautiful way, that people cannot live without it.

they listened to understand rather than to respond.

After a day of watching the two-legs interact from within their midst, she was certain that they could talk as well as any wolf. Unlike wolves, however, they mostly used their mouths, a thing she found limiting. How could you tell someone to keep away from your food when your own mouth was full?

words used wrong are like poison.

I want to tell you everything without saying anything." (118)

Our siblings push buttons that cast us in roles we felt sure we had let go of long ago — the baby, the peacekeeper, the caretaker, the avoider.... It doesn't seem to matter how much time has elapsed or how far we've traveled.

Our siblings push buttons that cast us in roles we felt sure we had let go of long ago - the baby, the peacekeeper, the caretaker, the avoider.... It doesn't seem to matter how much time has elapsed or how far we've traveled.

They learn to relate by caretaking, pleasing, isolating, or acting out rather than fully relating with their true and authentic selves. As a result, they feel accepted for their roles, not for who they were. Adult Children often have no idea how to have an equal partner relationship with healthy communication and normal conflict. As one ACOA said, "I feel that everyone else got a book at birth on how to live life, have relationships, and parent—and I never got my copy.

There is often the fear of "making waves" or "not being good" and enormous guilt for doing or saying the wrong thing or making a mistake. Family members rarely see or learn normal conflict resolution, and any sign of conflict triggers fear of either violence or abandonment.

Connection can take many forms. It can be as simple as saying "I love you and the answer is no

a power struggle with your child. When that happens, be willing to back away and start over when you have changed your attitude—which will enable your child to change his.

Where do we put your diaper?" "Which book do you want to read?" "What do you think will happen if you push your tricycle over the curb?" or "How should we get ready for childcare?

When your child wants to do something else, you can say, "That isn't one of the choices. You can decide between ________ (repeat the choices available).

There is simply no substitute for time and attention, and children who have the opportunity to bond well with parents find it easier to get along with others and to be comfortable in their world as they grow up.