Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded.
It’s a relationship between equals.
Only when we know our own darkness well
can we be present with the darkness of others.
Compassion becomes real when
we recognize our shared humanity.
Pema Chödrön
Equanimity is a two-way street. We must face our fears; in loving-kindness, dwell in our own darkness. It is how the heart opens. Only then is compassion a gift worth giving and receiving.
To know whether we are giver or receiver is never necessary. Who is to say where one ends and the other begins.
Aim for Even posts offer equanimity in daily doses. No day or dose is ever the same, even if the aim is. You may read about the origins of Aim for Even here or on this site’s About page.
my wife and i have been volunteering with big bend hospice for some time now and I can attest that i get as much or more out of the experience than my patients and their families!
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