The Kiddie Pool

 

"I think that little pool is the kiddie pool," Victoria said.

"Probably," Anna agreed.

"No!"  Elise said, depositing her two pennies worth of opinion into the conversation quite forcefully.  "It isn't!"

"Yes, it is," Victoria said definitively.  With the backing of her older sister, Victoria was secure in her knowledge and willing to defend it against all attackers.

"No, it isn't a kitty pool," Elise said, refusing to give an inch.  "Kitties don't swim.  Maybe big cats swim, but not kittens!"

I had to chuckle.  Communication is an issue on lots of different levels, even between an eight-year-old and her three-year-old sister.

It seems that human relationships are fraught with miscommunication.  It isn't the problem of using unknown tongues or foreign languages.  The problem is that our underlying concepts and ideas are different and even though we are using familiar words, the people around us do not understand what we are trying to say.

If only it was as simple as clarifying the difference between the words 'often' and 'orphan' as in the operetta The Pirates of Penzance.  Unfortunately, it is often a lot harder to sort out our differences.  

Hebrews 13:16 tells us not to forget to communicate.  At first, this seems like an obvious command and something that hardly needs to be stated.

The longer I live, the more I realize that communication is not a given.  We need to realize that communication is not simply me saying what my opinions and ideas are with great force.

Communication is when I shut my mouth and sit down and listen and attempt to understand what the other person is really saying.  It will help with my relationships.  It may even let me know that my older sister is saying the word 'kiddie,' and not 'kitty.'