Growing up I hated talking on the phone, for reasons I've never been able to understand, and - as a Gen-Xer - this made me a bit unusual. I still prefer speaking via Zoom or face-to-face as I like to see people's expressions as well as hear their voices. But, whether by phone, Zoom, or in person, I have always been struck by how hungry people are to be heard.
I come from a generation where answering the home phone was a privilege. "Walton-Upon-Thames 3474" was our number when I was growing up in the 70s in England :) Ringing one of my friends was not even in the lexicon.
I'm so glad you've highlighted the power of voice like this. I've been writing a bit about 'listening' and 'being present'. An actual conversation with actual people is a prerequisite for that.
I am also interested in your point about voice notes. I suspect I'm late to these and still not a habitual user, but I know they are crucially important in some settings. For example, my older brother, a retired foreign correspondent and Middle East expert, uses them extensively to exchange messages with friends in countries like Syria where connectivity is unreliable (it is always strange seeing his round white face nattering away in Arabic in his London lounge room!).
Another example that comes to mind is my Chinese friend whose spoken English is good, but he's not confident enough to write English. So, he sends me voice notes in WhatsApp instead.
So interesting! Love your insights on voice notes, I hadn’t thought of that and they illustrate really well how different kinds of medium can help us, too, in understanding each other (and ourselves :) — often I find when I drop voice notes, I make sense of my own thoughts and feelings. Thanks for sharing and for sharing this work, too!
Growing up I hated talking on the phone, for reasons I've never been able to understand, and - as a Gen-Xer - this made me a bit unusual. I still prefer speaking via Zoom or face-to-face as I like to see people's expressions as well as hear their voices. But, whether by phone, Zoom, or in person, I have always been struck by how hungry people are to be heard.
💛 I relate to this a lot. Thank you for sharing, dear Meredith!
I come from a generation where answering the home phone was a privilege. "Walton-Upon-Thames 3474" was our number when I was growing up in the 70s in England :) Ringing one of my friends was not even in the lexicon.
I'm so glad you've highlighted the power of voice like this. I've been writing a bit about 'listening' and 'being present'. An actual conversation with actual people is a prerequisite for that.
I am also interested in your point about voice notes. I suspect I'm late to these and still not a habitual user, but I know they are crucially important in some settings. For example, my older brother, a retired foreign correspondent and Middle East expert, uses them extensively to exchange messages with friends in countries like Syria where connectivity is unreliable (it is always strange seeing his round white face nattering away in Arabic in his London lounge room!).
Another example that comes to mind is my Chinese friend whose spoken English is good, but he's not confident enough to write English. So, he sends me voice notes in WhatsApp instead.
So interesting! Love your insights on voice notes, I hadn’t thought of that and they illustrate really well how different kinds of medium can help us, too, in understanding each other (and ourselves :) — often I find when I drop voice notes, I make sense of my own thoughts and feelings. Thanks for sharing and for sharing this work, too!