All in what you decide to hear

Some people call it selective hearing.

Usually,

 this means being able to not hear.

The ability to ignore the things we don't want to hear,

  or those we choose not to hear.

I admit it.

I can be damned good at this.

The thing is there is another side.

You learn to hear certain things.

You recognize certain sounds.

For me,

 it is the sound of my mom's phone.

That tone perks up my ears,

 and depending on the time of day,

  it tends to increase my heart rate.

I will try to give some clues to help you understand.

I live in a three generation household.

My mother, myself, and my niece.

I am basically a caretaker.

We have been living together for a few years.

You learn the sounds.

You know when the phone should ring,

 and you know when the timing is off.

This leads back to the hearing thing.

I can be watching a movie,

 headphones on,

   and still hear the phone ring from fifty feet away.

Then,

  I wait for my name to be called.