When I’m at my job working there are layers of sounds. I hear the machines as their mechanical functions repeat and go on. I listen to the voices of people as they order, listen to their banter as they wait and we share conversations, and listen to the chatter of them as they eat.

I listen to the background noise of coworkers as they engage in their interactions with people. I hear the sounds of working, bags opening, beeps from timers, and the voices calling out special needs and orders. I hear people asking for things, saying thank you, and wishing me a blessed day. I hear it all… the collective effort of a team of people providing customer service. When the busy slows, I hear the laughter and small talk of my work family.

At home when I work, I hear the familiar sounds of my Playlist in the background. The sounds of old songs that touch my heart, inspire me or the ones that make me want to dance about as I go about my chores. Other times the background sounds are the droning of the television, the familiar voices of the old shows, and my voice as I talk to the mutts that follow my every step.

At work in the world outside, I hear the sounds of nature, at times it’s silence and at others the lively chatter of birds, the frogs, the bugs, the hummingbirds as they buzz past. I hear distant mowers, cars, and at times the whistle of the trains in the distance as well as planes as they fly overhead.

The fact is, the ambient sounds of life are often unnoticed, but to me, they are everywhere… It’s like when the power in the house goes out suddenly you notice a surreal quiet, one that makes you stop and notice the lack of sound. What I listen to at work varies depending on where I’m working…  take a moment today, stop, breathe, be still…. Listen…