Bear's Blog

When you see, listen and talk to someone, there’s more going on than you imagine! A person’s voice, expressions and appearance convey a lot of information; underlying all of it is energy. You can say the same words in multitudes of ways* and signal very different things. Communication is happening on many levels. Thoughts (intention) and the meanings of the words spoken are still important; we have less control over our demeanor and physical cues. How does that all translate in today's world?

In practical terms, communication has come a long way. First there was the spoken word, then the written word...  books, newspapers, the telegraph – mail! Soon we could speak over a distance on the radio and telephone. Picture and voice came together on live TV!  Words traveled faster too, via email and texting.  With cell phones we could see and  talk to each other; video conferencing took off during Covid. Each medium has its own best use, but the  gold standard is still in-person. What have we lost, and gained with this progress?

The tech era of the "world wide web" has begun a different relationship to time and space. Healers have done this for centuries in an altered state; to experience it is to have a much broader understanding of human potential. Although most don’t realize this, the online world has set the groundwork for our evolution! It’s mostly seen as convenient; we can communicate across space, and replays make time no longer binding. It is literally new connective tissue between people.

We can find like-minded communities and opportunities to work, learn, find resources and engage in meaningful relations. We no longer have to travel as much, whether for work or to visit. We’re can communicate live through technology and witness events simultaneously; that means a collective response reflected in our group energy field. We have gained time, saved resources and conquered distance with our online activity.   

Our voices and images still carry energy and information in that format. Even so, being together in person is optimal. There's a group energy field in a live performance that can't be duplicated. The creative, spontaneous interaction that can happen between individuals or a small group is not the same online. The depth of our closest relationships - people we see every day - is not possible without our presence. We may develop an intellectual and emotional connection online, but the physical aspect is essential for intimacy.

Those relationships give us true joy, but can also be the most vexing! We’re literally put on the spot as we react in real time. We may tend to avoid conflict online (save it for an email?!) but we can’t ignore, disengage or walk away from another person without fallout. What I see and hear about these days is the loss of interpersonal skills; a lack of confidence in our instincts and sense of self in connection with another. It takes practice from a young age! Developing new relationships is getting harder. the prevalence of the internet is making us more isolated and disconnected. It's typical to see people in public that, although they are with other people, are on their phones!  

We yearn for more genuine intimacy in our lives. Superficial interactions, while supportive, aren’t totally satisfying (and often one-sided online). We want to be seen, heard and known deeply. Non-violent communication is a framework from the 60’s that promoted kind, beneficial and productive ways to engage with others - verbally. That requires the ability to listen without judgment and respond authentically, but without an emotional energy charge. We all need more practice interacting from a place of understanding and compassion.

Peace, love and healing -

Bear

*Recently there was a TikTok trend - "Wow, OK" - to say the same phrase with clearly different meanings! We can understand a foreign language speaker - or uneven gibberish - through the energy transmitted.