sharing is caring

compassion (noun)- a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate suffering

i've been thinking a lot lately about compassion. i feel like in order to understand the meaning of the word it must be broken down. the prefix of the word, "com" means with or together. the word passion means "any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate". so combined, compassion quite literally means feeling a powerful feeling together. my own instinct when defining compassion is feeling bad for someone. if someone is hurt and we show compassion, we show that we "feel for" them. in fact we are not supposed to just "feel for" them but instead "feel with" them. we are supposed to completely take their feelings onto ourselves and get on their level. it is not enough to feel bad for the people in haiti; in order to be compassionate we must take their sorrow upon ourselves and share in their grief. this is far deeper than any definition i could have come up with.

to have compassion on someone, we have to get on their level. whether that be in joy or sorrow, we need to literally share their feelings to understand them and be able to alleviate suffering. we need to laugh with people, cry with people. to love with them. to step out of our own thoughts and feelings and accept those of others. compassion is a selfless and difficult act committed by a person whose love is so overflowing that it extends to and envelopes the receiver. only then can we share in passion with another person.

it seems compassion is less about feeling "for" and more about "with"

FML

i wrote this a while ago. i think it's kinda funny. maybe rude and ignorant, but kinda funny.

Ode to the Dissatisfied

To those who don’t think they are good enough,

To those who view their lives as rough,

I’ve got a word for you.

You want deep blue eyes and long blond hair,

Less flab here and more skin there,

Just listen to yourself.

To say the least you’re in good health,

And are considered to have sufficient wealth,

Which is more than many can say.

You’d rather live someone else’s life,

You complain about the most trivial strife,

How blind can you be?

Do you have any idea how lucky you are?

Do you understand how incredibly far-

Many would go to be you?

"There rises an unspeakable desire after the knowledge of our buried life"

1. Write a book

2. Study abroad

3. Go to Africa

4. Be a photographer

5. Own a typewriter

6. Go cliff jumping

7. Do summer staff

8. Have something published

9. Do something crazy impulsive

10. Get married

11. Live in Arizona

12. Sell a painting

13. Get a tattoo

14. Buy a car by myself

15. Have kids

16. Be a teacher

17. Do a back handspring

18. Swim with dolphins

19. Win the lottery

20. Learn all the words to “We Didn’t Start The Fire”

21. Read War and Peace

22. Be part of a revolution.

23. Walk across hot coals.

24. Skydive

25. Shoot a gun

i made this list a few years ago. it's been growing. and so far i've taken care of numbers 9, 19, and 22. cutting off all my hair was CRAZY impulsive. i wont $6 on a scratch off. camping out in the middle of philadelphia for a weekend to encourage a bill supporting invisible children was a REVOLUTION. i'm still working on the other 22 things. and continually adding more. these are the things i want to do before i die. and believe me, i will.

check out The Buried Life by Matthew Arnold.

"Honestly, if you're not willing to sound stupid, you don't deserve to be in love" -A Lot Like Love

an excerpt from a definition essay i wrote a while ago for my writing class:

So the question arises, what is love? Webster defines being in love as “being with or feeling deep affection or passion for another person”. I have a passion for dancing. Am I in love with dancing? I would say probably not. I don’t have intimate feelings for or wish to marry dancing. I probably won‘t always love dancing. The definition of love, I believe, is different for every person. So this is my definition. A few years ago, I fell in love with God. I came to the realization that I no longer wanted to live for me, but that there was someone I wanted to be with forever and give everything to. I think being in love with a human being will be something like this. I don’t think I could ever love a person in the way that I love God, but I think the two are closely related. I could never stop loving God, even if I wanted to, and I feel that there is nothing He could do to make me love Him less. Love, to me, is when we fully, constantly put another person before us. When we totally lose ourselves

I hope, one day, that I can lose myself. I'm siked.

how easy it is to love You

how easy it is to love You,

on days when the sun shines,

above the sky gleams bright blue,

and happiness feels eternally mine.

how easy it is to love You,

as a passing stranger smiles,

when responsibilities are few,

and i can relax for a while.

how easy it is to love You,

on days my hair cooperates,

continual small fortunes ensue,

and i am pleased with my fate.

how easy it is to love You,

when everything is going right,

when your glory is in plain view,

i can love You with all my might.

but if i stumble, trip, and fall,

and my world seems to fall apart,

it gets hard to love and give my all,

but i still praise You in my heart.

whether hard or easy i will love You,

when things go perfectly or nothing works out,

Your love and goodness stand true,

and I will praise You without a doubt.

this is one of the first poems i ever wrote. it's not good but i like it. i'm starting this blog out with old things i've written. eventually i will post new stuff. enjoy!