What does it mean to you ?

and ...

How do you express it towards others ?

It is frightening to me that the world seems to lack compassion. Compassion is overlooked unless its something huge and makes the news. I do think that a lot of folks act compassionately without knowing they have. Sheesh, what I just said totally contradicts itself. What scares me most is when I feel as if I am losing a sense of compassion for people. One of those "in the world but not of the world" things. I don't want to be "of the world" if that means I become cold and calloused and driven by my wants just for myself. I also know that people can take the compassion energy right out of you as if you were a never ending slurpee of emotional support. Yes, I am drained at this point.

bluesbaby said:

then it would seem right that we may limit the amount of compassion towards the vamps that suck us dry of it ?

Machaela said:

in a way, because you can't let a person drain you, especially if you know they have other outlets for support. there have to be boundaries sometimes, and sometimes those boundaries need to be there, not to hold the other person back, but for you to adhere to so you won't compromise your spiritual health and well being.

bluesbaby said:

do you see compassion as a balance between human nature and our spiritual selves ? ... comming from both areas, i mean

Machaela said:

I think that its essential to the spirit.....that it is a core part of our spirits, whether we act compassionately with humanity, creation..some folks find it easier to do so with creation and not humanity. In that same way, it comes from human nature in that it is part of being human. When people don't have compassion, don't have a sense of feeling for others, then we label them "inhuman". Are there various levels of that? Yes. Sociopaths like Dennis Rader, the BTK killer, would be considered completely inhuman....yet he had a family, what did he think of them? Life is such a paradox. Dietrich Boenhoffer had such compassion for humanity that Hitler killed him for helping Jews escape. He would give his life for the humanity of another...

Hi ladies

I too become startled when I notice my compassion slipping. It's one of my trademarks and something I guard very carefully. Compassion comes easily and naturally to me. As natural as breathing. But sometimes there is just so much going on that you are drained.

The other day I was in downtown LA, transferring from the bus to the train and I was crossing the street and I saw this hagged out homeless lady. She was wandering through the middle of the intersection with a sign babbling and just looking like she was on her last legs. I always help the homeless. There is something about the homeless that has a real place in my heart.

So many people want to play the "responsibility" card on the homeless and I would really truly believe that someone would rather be "responsible" than to have nowhere to sleep, no food to eat, slim chances at getting out of their hole. I always believe it is not for me to judge that person, but to love them the best way I can.

So this woman is just wandering through the middle of the street and at first I passed her by, getting irritated that she was walking around like a crazy woman almost getting hit by the cars and I got half way down the street and I checked myself. I thought to myself....how dare you judge that woman like that and I turned right back around and went and gave her a dollar.

And you know what, the next day I found a lotto ticket on the ground, turned it in and got $32 Showing compassion is the path I always need to take, even when I don't feel like it. It's always rewarded in one way or another.

Great topic. Love you gals

Hi Richard!


I try to be good about that too, with the homeless, when I can. I know there are plenty of scammers out there who come into the church for money, but I would rather err on the side of compassion than not caring.




My doggie is in surgery totally off topic.....
hopefully it's just an absess.....

I express it through sincere concern and affection.....

Is there any other way?

Whap!

DexMSR said:

i agree ... but what about compassion towards those that we have no affection for

is that possible

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

hey baby

showing compassion usually returns to me in beautiful ways also

keep on with your bad self !!

Machaela said:

Yes it's possible.

Sweeny79 said:

do you practice it ? and how ?

Machaela said:

I try to treat every one equally. In my classroom of course there are kids I don't care for, when I moderate here I don't always like everyone... But I don't ignore a child who needs help and I don't ban orgers I have a distaste for.... even though sometimes I wish I could do both.

Sweeny79 said:

Machaela said:

I guess that means you like my answer.

Sweeny79 said:

i respect your answer i LIKE you

i am just trying to do some learning here bout human connections

wish more brave souls would speak out on their views of compassion

Machaela said:

I like you too Mach, lots.

It's hokey, but I remember a priest telling me when I was a kid.." you have to love everyone, even if you don't like them. Loving someone is a verb not a noun. You love someone by treating them the way Christ would treat them."

Now I fall short of that on the daily basis, but that is what I strive to acheive.

I believe that compassion is when you can surrender yourself, your thoughts, your feelings, your judgements and allow God or your divine spirtual guidance to take over.

It is when you can forgive, love, and care for someone who has no reason for this from you, yet through God you do these things anyway...you let go of who you are in the flesh.

Whether it be hurt by someone you love or someone you don't even know, or even someone you know but have no love for....for instance, I was hurt very bad by someone I loved to a point I lost who I was from my spirit to my mental health to my feeling of being a women. Yet through spiritual growth I found that I felt far more sorry for them for what they had put theirself through in doing what they did to me, then I felt sorry for myself in what they put me through....I mean I was wonderful to them..yet they didn't love theirselves enough to feel they deserved what I had to offer...so I felt so bad that they were so down about who they were, and didn't know how beautifully designed God had made them and that they needed to put closure on the bad in their life...I felt that I through my pain could at least find comfort in coming to my father above...where they were so lost they didn't know where to go and went on putting only bad things that they thought brought them happiness (of course temporary-drinking, sex, feeling of having power over others) into their life.....so as I healed in spirit I forgave them and continued to pray for them to have peace in their life, and to know that they were loved so much and forgiven for anything they had done in life, by me and God.

Another situation of having compassion is when I drive...Oh how I despise CA drivers-god knows I need to work on this and am. There are people who cut us off, flip us off, feel a sense of power through the car they drive although they may have no power out of the car. People who don't use there blinkers and think you're a mind reader and know they want to get right in front of you and then drive super slow. People who'd rather drive on your ass and perhaps cause an accident then to just slow down and drive at a normal speed....I'm like damn, Gas is high enough I ain't wasting it on your ass cuz ya wana be driving 85 on a 55mph road. I got better things to waste my money on then your ass wasting my gas. BUT when I start to get upset....I then stop and feel more sorry for the person driving like this....driving on my or another person bumper, flashing their lights, almost causing an accident...I pray for their safety, wonder what could of happend at the moment...are they trying to rush to get to a hospital, did they start off the day with an arugument that made them mad at the world, did they recieve bad news and are just filled with grief and not thinking when they are on the road, perhaps having their thoughts on what is bringing them down that day. So instead I put my selfish side away, ask God to forgive my selfish thoughts and ask Him to be with His child and help them in the area they need to be healed.

Compassion is seeing a guy kicking a dog and feeling even more sorry for that guy for whatever has happened in his life to make him think the way he is, then you have for the dog being hurt.

We all have our two sides...in the flesh and in the spirit...of course more then not I'm usually in the flesh, but thank God for forgiveness and compassion towards us after all the crazyness we do, that I can come to stop, go to a spiritual place to think my thoughts over and reflect His compassion towards me.

Richard (supa)-I have a saying from the bible for you and the story u told. It says..."Do not be a respecter of man, for there are angels that visit you." meaning that it didn't matter how that homeless person looked to you...you had love in your heart anyway, u didn't treat them good because they looked and dressed nice, smelled good,etc, you helped them because of what was in your heart....and Perhaps?, they were your angel in disguise?????

Love you babes
Moni-Q (Girl6)

nice