COMPASSION; one of the great lessons in Suffering.

“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.“
John Wesley 

Earlier in life, I suppose I never stopped and looked to see the compassion all around me in the hurried, harried, busy world of daily living.  A Saturday morning shopping at Costco should convince most that compassion is on the endangered species list.  It seems easier to witness the rudeness in others than the compassion. 

Yet a five month stint on crutches for me some time ago changed all that.  As I would gimp along toward the doors of the mall, there would always be some stranger stopping and waiting to open a door for me.  And as I would thank them gratefully for their kindness, they would often remark how they too had experienced such a need for crutches or how a member of their family had need of them.  I found myself depending on the kindness of strangers.      

So what are the portions of my life that I treasure most?  It is the little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love to others that I had done.  And because I too have been the recipient of so many of those kindnesses, that has evoked a sublime state of gratitude that I strive to share with those that express such goodness.  

And waffling back and forth between compassion and gratefulness and gratefulness and compassion all day long is a life worth living.  And the people I meet along the way are most beautiful.  I suspect suffering has also played a role in their lives.

 “The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. 

These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.“Elisabeth Kübler-Ross