Empathy.

I don't think many know the true meaning of empathy. Empathy is more than understanding how someone feels. It's feeling and comprehension. To understand, you kill off hatred. It's impossible to hate or be biased when you comprehend the fact that everyone has their own life, their own shoes, and therefore their own story. You want to hate, you want to be biased, and rage when people upset you, but you can't hate. Because you don't know what those people are going through, what they've been through, and how they were brought up and taught. When someone upsets you, you want to be angry and upset, because they ignored you or treated you wrongly, but you can't be angry. You think of what they're going through and now you can't blame them. It's not their fault how some things come about. It's no ones fault on how they're raised and how some things influence them. We're influenced from the second we're born. No newborn has the power to have their own mind when outside forces weigh so heavily on them.

Since you understand this all you can do is rage, but rage without being hypocritical of your own comprehension. Which is absolutely maddening, because part of the human function is to react to situations with emotion. And if you were to react irrationally or illogically you'd become even more frustrated, with yourself, and curse yourself for your own ability to comprehend the human mind and life in general. Sounds complex, doesn't it? And then there're those who you can feel deep, unspoken emotion. Tears threaten to spill over when a woman talks about her sister having cancer. She isn't even crying, so you have to control your own emotions. The kicker, is you've never met her before. But you could feel.

I feel like this daily. I see ignorant, rude, childish and/or mean people almost daily. I see criminals on the news, and all I feel is pity. I can't get mad at them, can't blame them, can't even silently curse at them. Because I don't know how their week/days been, I don't know the entirety of their story, or an inkling of it. I can't judge and I can't get mad. Not knowing their lives, their perception, struggles, and influences prevents me from giving a fair judgement, so I give none. I only wish someone would actually help them, instead of shun and condemn them. I'm not intelligent when it comes to science and math, and I'm not a renowned author or doctor or lawyer, but I can honestly say I understand something most, if not all of them, don't. It's what I believe in and what I try to live by.

 I'm both blessed and cursed, but proud either way.