“A friend is someone who helps you up when you’re down, and if they can’t, they lay down beside you and listen.” Unknown

When is the last time you missed hearing something important because you were so busy? What was the outcome?

My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. (James 1:19; NLT)

This came to me a couple of weeks back and I thought it would make a great Friday story. As coaches, we’re trained to listen. Those of you who have known me for some time can remember that listening was not one of my strong suits. Now that I’ve been coaching for a little more than eight years, I’ve made significant improvements, but I recognize that I’ve got a ways to go yet. As Andrew Wommack, one of my mentors, says, “I ain’t there yet, but I’ve left.” This story will likely show you, just as it showed me, that maybe I’m not quite as far along as I thought.

Who is he?

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

If you were touched in some way by the story, please leave us a comment. We would love to hear from you. For the background to the story, check out the Link of the Day below.

Prayer Power
Lord, forgive us for being so busy and so rushed that we fail to listen. We fail to listen to You, to our spouse, our children, our friends, our loved ones and co-workers. Help us learn to slow down and “smell the roses.”

Link of the Day
Pearls Before Breakfast

Blessings on you as you purpose to L-I-S-T-E-N to someone this weekend.