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Empathy

When I was young, I used to pretend that other people could see through my eyes. More than just seeing what I saw, though, I pretended they could feel the emotions I felt. For the good times, it was a way for me to feel like I was on stage, like the things I was doing were important. For the bad times, it gave my circumstances purpose, like someone would understand what I was experiencing. I remember reading not long ago that maybe what people want, more than to be loved, is to be understood. I think this practice reflected that need in me, though I never could have understood it at that age. It makes me wonder now how much others have that same need, a need to be understood, and makes me think that maybe I should do more to empathize with others. In effect, I would be practicing the exact opposite of the thing I wanted for myself. I would be seeing through other people's eyes.

It all sounds so ideal, but I think it's possible when a person is rooted enough in his or her walk with God to experience the peace he brings. It's that peace that makes it possible to empathize in the first place. Otherwise, you're so immersed in your own problems that you can't see past your own two eyes, and your only wish is that others could see things as you do.

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