EMPATHY

Empathy ( em’pə-thė ) n. 1. sympathetic understanding of another person.

As words go it is not the longest or complicated to spell. It carries a simple four word definition. However, it seems to be one of the most difficult for people to grasp and employ in their life.

Let's just set aside the bigger implications like war, genocide, religious intolerance, and social stratification that are exacerbated by the absence of empathy and focus on the individual personal relationships we have. How we abuse and torment those closest to us.

We are not talking your everyday spats, misunderstandings, or miscommunications; that's life and we all have our own way of doing it and usually see it clearly with a bit more information or a different delivery. We are talking the kind of strife created when, for whatever reason, one of our personal relationships fails; a complete breakdown. It happens with friends, family, and partners.

It is an especially onerous situation when it is has been a long term, ongoing relationship. We have intimate knowledge of one another and know just what buttons to push, how to inflict the most pain, how to best abuse and torment each other. My question is why? Why do we do this? In place of what once was great affection, endearing and enduring, some can turn into the most viscous, vile, and spiteful things to walk the earth. Why do we not use this intimate knowledge of another, of the situation and our part in the situation to employ some EMPATHY?!

Being Human means lots of things. We react. We fight or flee. We lash out or with draw. These are givens. Where did we acquire this mean streak of destroying one another?