THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL 4 | NOVEMBER 2025 But the grandfather’s initial advice, “be still and listen,” reminded me of one of my favorite ancient wisdoms: “Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future.” That advice is also an iteration and echo of one of my persistent (and futile) complaints, i.e., the loss of time to reflect. Before facsimile machines, scanners, emails and text messages, lawyers crafted letters and documents through a process that, of necessity, included drafts and redrafts and time to reflect upon the words before transmitting the product by mail to the recipient. With the accelerated cycle of work and client expectations of immediate responses that have become the “new normal” for our profession, the time to reflect has been lost. In my experience, the potential for error and a lower standard of craftsmanship has been the result of that loss. In the novel, the treehouse is an allegory for a place and time to be still and listen. Twice this year, I have had the honor to address the 2025 new admittees to our association, along with the swearing-in ceremony attendees who love and applaud the admittees in their new profession. For those few moments and in that place, those present had an opportunity to be still and listen to the wise advice of Chief Justice Dustin P. Rowe to “return your phone calls.” Less sage but heartfelt were my following thoughts shared with those who attended, which I now share with you. In my opinion, the profession of law is the most advantageous profession on Earth! The learning process trains us to solve problems in a variety of life situations. It gives us great opportunities to do so many things our fellow citizens cannot. In addition to having opportunities to positively impact our laws and society, we also have the opportunity to help people – to do the greater good! “FIRST, JUST BE STILL AND LISTEN” is the opening advice from the grandfather in The Treehouse, a novel by Naomi Wolf. “It is a disaster that we are losing the option of silence – with all these televisions, all these channels, these devices you carry that constantly interrupt you. ... The very first lesson to a young poet, or anyone starting in on creative work, is this: go somewhere quiet and listen inwardly. What you hear internally might completely surprise you; and it will not be true unless you hear it first internally.” Several years ago, my three oldest grandsons decided that I needed to build a treehouse for them at our home in the country. As I began looking for building plans for treehouses that might be adapted to the configuration of trees near our home, I stumbled across The Treehouse. It is a loosely biographical story of an independent-minded woman in her 40s reconnecting with her 80-year-old father, who is both a poet and a quasi-mystical figure. The woman asks her father to teach her how and help her build a “treehouse” for the woman’s child/the father’s grandchild. What she is really seeking is a place and time to “be still and listen” – a refuge from the hectic and combative world in which she is living. The book was a difficult read for me because of all the poetry incorporated into the novel (as mentioned in an earlier message to you, my engineering and law school education did not train me to understand and appreciate poetry). One reference that did call to me was William Wordsworth’s 1802 poem, “The World Is Too Much With Us,” which reads, in part: The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon! First, Just Be Still and Listen From the President By D. Kenyon “Ken” Williams Jr. D. Kenyon “Ken” Williams Jr. is a shareholder and director at Hall Estill in Tulsa. 918-594-0519 kwilliams@hallestill.com (continued on page 73)
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