My December 28 journal entry was titled "Talk", and I have been thinking about that entry lately. Usually I forget entries just as soon as they disappear into my archives. But "Talk" has stuck with me for some reason. Perhaps it is just that I am not done with the subject.

In the "Talk" entry, I mentioned some of the topics my family discuss. One of the big ones that seems to come up again and again, is who people are and how they are related. My parents grew up in the area and left and this is how they have to talk when speaking about people with my relatives who have stayed in the area. It means nothing to me and I become bored when they start throwing out names.

And this week I have kind of noticed how I react to many conversations that don't directly involve me. I zone them out.

But now I discover that perhaps I should start paying attention. I am reading Natalie Goldberg's book Writing Down the Bones. One of her chapters reminds me that people's talk is excellent fodder for story writing. "We are not gossiping cruelly. We are just trying to understand life," Goldberg says.

So in the future, when I get bored with conversations, it will be a signal to me that maybe I should listen a little bit closer. And perhaps my own conversational skills will improve. ...Doubtful, I know. :)

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