It seems like most of the time, when I listen to a podcast, it’s to get something out of it. I’m on the hunt for tidbits of creative advice, insight into a craft, or equipment for living life in these trying times.
Rarely do I listen just to listen.
Marc Maron’s interview with David Chang was one of those rare exceptions. And let me tell you, it was a breath of fresh air.
As Verlyn Klinkenborg writes in Several Short Sentences About Writing, we’ve all “learned to gather something called meaning from what we read…You’ve been taught to overlook the character of the prose in front of you in order to get at its meaning.”
Listening to David and Marc’s conversation felt like the witnessing of genuine vulnerability. Not for the sake of mining meaning or insight, but simply for the sake of witnessing, being present.
Simply listening to listen.
joshua chamberlain 