It came to my attention today that a Scarborough MP recently died of cancer. Arnold Chan was fifty years of age and a well respected and loved politician who was first and foremost a humanitarian who cared deeply for his constituents and fellow Members of Parliament. He was said to be positive, optimistic and full of energy.

After hearing a replay of one of his speeches, this particular sentence stood out for me…”That is the challenge that is going on around the world right now,” he said. “No one is listening. Everyone is just talking at once. We have to listen to each other.”

“We have to listen to each other.” How profound is that? And how timely? And how to the point…whether in politics, families, friendships, relationships, marriages…”We have to listen to each other.”

These words remind me of a line from the famous poem, “Desiderata”: And listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, for they too have their story.

Some people leave this world a better place by the things they have said and done. Arnold Chan was one of those people just by uttering that single sentence…”We have to listen to each other.”