Compassion is the way forward

By Laura Garber, Hamilton

As we all adjust to life after the election, it is important that we come back together. It is important that we remember we are all humans, we are all Americans, and we are all in this together.  

The fabric of our collective trust has gotten worn out. We have not been functioning as a civil society. We may have forgotten the sense of kinship that binds us and we have replaced kinship with feelings of tribalism. Do we even remember what trust and civil society look and feel like?  

By cultivating Compassion, both for ourselves and for our fellows, we can move forward and heal. Compassion is feeling with others, it is becoming present with their joys and suffering, it is connecting at the heart level, it is a core part of being a human. Compassion is looking beyond the exterior, beyond the labels, and outside the boxes we have put each other in. Compassion is the way forward and we are all capable of cultivating compassion within ourselves.

By thinking and feeling with and for others we can weave our social fabric back together. We have all suffered from this election, no matter if the candidates we prefer won or lost. We all suffer from Covid, whether we believe in it or not, no matter if we wear a mask or not. Since suffering is what we have in common right now, we can use that to understand and feel with our fellow humans. You suffer, I suffer, she suffers, he suffers, and we can lift each other up and transmute that suffering into a true civic revival.  

Treat others how you want to be treated. That is such a basic rule and it is time we enact it in every action, deed, word, and thought. Start with suffering. None of us wants to suffer, so let’s stop making each other suffer!! It is time we look for, and find, the good in every person, and tap into our inherent human reservoir of compassion. It is time we forgive ourselves and each other, stop blaming, and start seeing the humans around us. It is time we clasp hands, open our hearts, and create a world that works for everyone.

Today, say a nice thing to someone. Today, do something thoughtful for someone you do not know. Today, be the change we need and be a living example of the power of compassion. Today, it all starts today.