Compassion is Not a Luxury

Compassion is Not a Luxury

It Is a Necessity for Us to Survive*

I am revealed to myself
Over
And
Over
Again
Through
Other 
People.

There is a member 
Of the 12 Step meeting
I am newly attending
Named Fred.

Daily
Fred
Teaches me
About myself.

What I see about myself
In this man’s reflection
Is not comfortable.

To me, when he shares, 
He goes on.  
And on.  

To me, 
When he shares,
His tangential thoughts 
Tangle my mind.

To me, 
When he shares,
I work hard,
Too hard
Tracking 
His threads.

To me, 
When he shares,
I get frustrated
And 
Mostly,
Bored.  

Bored
And 
Annoyed.

Compassion
Doesn’t feel
Accessible
To me.

My boredom
Takes me away.

I know better.
I want to stay with him better.

Yet
I cannot find
Access
To 
Compassion.

Or curiosity.

Or interest.

Nada.
Nothing.
Just
Bored 
And
Annoyed.

Until today.
Something quite 
Horrid happened.

Although we are all muted during the calls,
But for the rotating speakers and the chairperson,
During Fred’s sharing,
(As I was willing myself to 
Attempt listening),

Someone
Really
Rudely,
Really 
Loudly
Really
Abrasively
Said
For
All to hear:

“What is this guy still talking about?”

It was mean and harsh and inappropriate and wrong.  

It violated every tradition of the Fellowship and shade of decency.  

The speaker, Fred, 
Absolutely heard,
Appeared appropriately 
Flummoxed, 
Said something quickly,
And abruptly ended
His sharing.

I was horrified.

Horrified.

Something so sacred
Was violated.

In the bigger picture,
It all worked out.

Texts were sent.
Fred
Was
Supported.

The offender,
Not a regular,
Disappeared.

And I learned something.
I saw something.

In the intense echo,
The shock of 
This total absence
Of compassion,
I woke up.

I saw Fred’s pain.
I imagined his embarrassment.
I felt his rejection.

Perhaps the total lack of compassion,
The existence of horrifying meanness
Can awaken me.

Perhaps I can look around,
See the absence of compassion
And utilize that
To return to a place
Of caring
Inside of me.

Perhaps I can look to
Others,
Their
Both positive
And
Negative actions,
To
Springboard
Into my own caring.

OH!
I don’t have to do it alone.

OH!
I don’t have to find my way
By myself.

OH!
I don’t have to struggle
To reunite with myself.

OH!

~~~
Dear friends, I’ve spent some time this week collapsing into YouTube.  Surrounded by fields of ragweed, a major immune system combatant of mine, I surrendered to Couch and Animals.  Yes, I confess, I’ve had a deep dive into the vast, delicious, and ridiculous subculture of animal videos.  This one, with some skittish hesitation, I must share.

It’s about the animals, of course.  But notice the people.  Notice—the amazing, compassionate, beyond-the-call-of-duty-kind-people.  And watch the flourishing of life and love and freedom, the direct result of human compassion.