We began this chapter with the story of a man who dedicated his life to active listening. Fred Rogers brought his ministerial values of compassion and kindness to the small screen, and through television he touched the lives of millions of children. In addition to establishing the longest-running show in history, he created a safe space in which children felt simultaneously entertained, educated, and affirmed by an adult who genuinely listened to them.

How do you use listening in your life? What values underlie your listening? Do you create metaphorical “neighborhoods” through your listening—places in which people feel welcomed and valued? Or, as Eddie Murphy once quipped, do you create places where whenever you “move in, everyone else moves away”?

The PBS soundstage Fred Rogers once strolled through lies abandoned now, just as his famous cardigan hangs empty in a Smithsonian display case. He’ll never again “be back when the day is new.” Yet the values he espoused will endure as long as people actively, compassionately, and respectfully listen to one another.