The crossed-out words in an old letter tell you more than the clean ones. Pay attention to what people almost said.

A finished sentence shows you what somebody decided to say. A crossed-out one shows what they nearly said and then thought better of, which is usually closer to what they were feeling. Hesitation is the most honest part of any message. In conversation it arrives as a half-sentence, a correction, a laugh that lands in the wrong place.

Listen for the near-misses this week. When somebody starts a sentence, stops and restarts it, that is the spot worth a gentle question later. Do not pounce on it in the moment; just remember it and ask when you are alone with them.