les murs ont des oreilles (“Who can say who is listening?”)

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les murs ont des oreilles

translation: “Who can say who is listening?”

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This is a french version of ‘the walls have ears.’

I know that I always told people in business, if they talked badly about clients & customers, those people would ‘hear’ and know exactly what was said <even without being within miles of the conversation>.

Look.

Hearing is often not a physical thing. It is often simply knowing. It is a feeling.

Here is a truth <albeit a harsh truth>. It is silly to believe you can say something out loud and not believe that it echoes through the ether in a way that someone can feel the ripples of the words.

Well. Not really silly. Just stupid. Or, if I m being generous, maybe just an ignorant attitude. If we believe we can say something and act differently, or not give out cues on how we really feel, we are stupid.

I fully understand we all say mean things sometimes. And sometimes we actually mean them. And sometimes they are uttered out of spite or some senseless random emotional trigger, in other words, semi-meaningless.

But. Here is the deal <that Life neglected to put in its handbook for you>.

Words have meaning. Words actually have a Life <they live & breathe>. Senseless or meaningful, silenet or even behind closed doors, all words are heard.

Always. And it amazes me when someone is surprised that something they said came circling back.

What are the words the surprised person says:

But it was a secret.

But I just told one person.

But everyone laughed.

But I didn’t really mean it.

But.

But.

But again.

Stop. You are a butthead.

Now. Let me throw you a curveball.

I don’t go for the bullshit of “if you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say it all” because we wouldn’t be human if we actually did that.

I go the other way.

Say what you mean.

Say what you feel.

Say it … and know it will be heard.

Say it to the people who you are talking about.

Don’t accept this advice at your own peril.

One last reminder.

No one is eavesdropping, but Life.

No one has betrayed you by sharing a secret.

No one has listened when they shouldn’t have.

Life is always listening. And Life will always share what it knows.

In the end, “who can say who is listening?” <I can answer that>

Life. And, by the way, Life is nosy and a gossip. It will most likely not tell you shit about its own secrets and, yet, it will not hesitate one second to share everyone else’s secrets.

The quicker you learn that the better off you will be. Your words will always be heard even if you do not want them to be.