I have known a lot of voicewalkers in my life. They rarely stand out immediately. You come to recognize them after a while more than from first impressions Lives don’t speak in one-time conversations. They speak over time.
You may notice them first for the things they don’t confuse. They don’t confuse their job or activities with who they are as people. They don’t confuse getting credit with success, or recognition with self-worth. They don’t confuse criticism for an enemy. They don’t confuse truth with social or political power. They don’t confuse their work with saving the world. They don’t confuse guilt with motivation.
Then you may notice something that is not easy to put a finger on: It is not so much what they do as who they are that makes a difference. They listen in a way that their own agenda does not seem to be in the way. They respond more from love than fear. They laugh at themselves. They cry with others’ pain, but never take over their journey. They know when to say no and to have the courage to do it. They work hard but are rarely too busy. Their life speaks.

from The Moral Imagination by John Paul Lederach