When I notice your pain, your grief, your struggle—compassion moves me to reach out, to comfort, to console. I have been where you are. I have experienced rejection, abandonment, abuse, and loss.
It starts with the awareness. If I am not aware of my own pain, I will never notice yours. If I am not aware of my own suffering, I will walk by and leave you on your own. If I am not aware of my own humanity, I will tend to overlook yours. If I am not aware of the Truth of my place as a beloved child of God, I will never welcome you as an equally beloved child of God.
Open my eyes and heart to love my neighbor as myself.