11 Apr Charity & Compassion

Charity

The Covid-19 crisis has shone a light on the human side of charity – the genuine charity and caring that comes from within, from caring for another human being. It is a charity that gives what we can give – money, time, but particularly attention.

We are seeing little examples:

• a vegan son cooking meat dishes for his mother who is isolated
• a 4-year-old reaching out to a 90-yr old neighbour with drawings of rainbows and words of caring & companionship
• the cellist who is giving her entire neighbourhood a concert from her porch
• the teens who are knocking on windows offering to shop for milk, bread and groceries for their neighbourhood seniors who are sheltering-in-place

We will soon need bigger, bolder charity for those further away.  But for now, we are seeing charity starting at our doorstep.

Compassion

I have decided to add compassion to the traditional trio (faith, hope & charity).

In this special moment in time, we are allowed to wallow in compassion for the situation of those around us. It allows us to develop a level of empathy previously unavailable to us.

At this moment in time, we are all one generation: Gen-Covid. We can each imagine or are experiencing the situation others are facing:

• the tragic loss of life
• the commitment of front-line healthcare staff who have to work
• the need for PPE and testing for health workers
• isolation & unease
• financial distress, lack of food
• the challenge of working full-time from home while managing your family
• the social distress of teens who are used to hanging in person while communicating via technology

This shared experience will enhance our EQ skills in so many ways, but particularly in the ability to stand in the other’s shoes.

Self-compassion

But compassion can also be a charity towards yourself.

This is a time to be gentle on your expectations of what should be, what could be and what is.

It is permission to honour your own feelings of sorrow –

for your personal losses, for the losses of those around you,
for the loss of innocence and the loss of certainty.

It is a time to rest, and reflect. Be generous in doing this for yourself.

Also in this series:

• Faith
• Hope
• Charity & Compassion