“When I don’t like a piece of music, I make a point of listening it it more closely.”

– Florent Schmitt

As one who has spent more than twenty-five years parenting teenagers, I must admit that I haven’t always followed this example.  There have been times, when heavy metal and rap came pouring out of speakers here and there, that I would discretely close doors or less discretely  yell, “turn that down!”  There are some things I just don’t want to hear; but when I get past the clashing dissonance and the angry profanity, I wonder if the thing I really don’t want to hear is the anger, the sadness, the angst that produced the music.  Maybe what I don’t want to consider is the thought that the child who listens may be able to relate to those huge and frightening feelings.  There are some things we just don’t want to hear; so rather than listening, we tune them out.

How often do we tune out other things we simply do not want to hear.  It is not only music that has the power to offend our ears.  Sometimes we find ourselves cringing at the dissonance of a new idea, a new opinion, something that does not align with our own views and leaves us feeling uncomfortable.  How do we react when our views are challenged?  Do we tune out the new opinions, or do we acknowledge our discomfort, find our courage, and listen more closely.  What do we hear when we push aside our first impressions?  What do we learn when we step outside our comfort zone and into the thoughts of another?

All music is constructed from the same notes.  From Mozart to Def Leppard, it all can be pulled apart to reveal those common building blocks.  How they are assembled determines the music they convey, the emotion they express, the ideas they represent.  Just as listening more closely to the music that strikes me as angry and without harmony allows me to see beyond its surface message of, “Keep Out” and to the deeper message of, “I am wounded;” listening more closely to ideas that seem to oppose my own may show me something about myself as I learn about those who see things differently.

It is a natural thing to defend the ideals we hold to be true.  If we seek the Truth as we live our lives, then it is natural that we would consider that truth worth defending.  On the other hand, it is only logical that we would consider the Truth as strong enough to stand up to new ideas and still maintain its integrity.  Perhaps when we listen more closely, we will discover the pieces of truth that lie in the dissonant point of view.  Perhaps we will discover the common threads that, like the basic notes of the musical scale, are the foundation for all beliefs.  When we listen closely to what others have to say — and to our own views as well — we have the opportunity to discover the mutual truths that bring us closer.  They may lie beneath the surface of something that seems to scream, “Keep Out!”  If only we are courageous enough to listen more closely, we may discover we are not so different after all.