As I was brushing my teeth, my wife mentioned something to me. I couldn’t hear what she was saying; the noise inside my head was too loud.

But it reminded me: we always have a noise inside our head. Everyone does. Not an actual noise, but an ongoing mosaic of thoughts.

That noise can be positive or negative. It can be helpful or inconclusive. And sometimes ... the noise is so loud that we’re unable to hear others.

In those moments, it’s up to us to consciously turn down the volume. To dial back our own internal voices and to do our best to listen to others. To reserve judgement and calculation, and to hold space for one another so that connection can occur.

The noise is always there. Controlling its volume is a choice we make.