Results for "empathy"
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Seeing the world from a different perspective adds insight into how we interpret our lives. For Temple Grandin, it meant first understanding why she saw the world in such a unique way.
Born in 1947 in Boston, Massachusetts, Grandin arrived at a time when little was known about autism. She was diagnosed at the age of 2, and doctors advised that she be institutionalized. She was socially withdrawn, didn’t speak until she was 4 years old, had sensitivity to touch and sound and engaged in repetitive behavior.
Yet her mother had an unwavering belief in Grandin. She provided speech therapy, occupational therapy and a nurturing home environment. The challenge of raising Grandin would test the best of mothers: Classmates misunderstood her. Other children bullied her. And teachers did not understand her unique way of thinking.
Eventually, her mother enrolled her in boarding school, where Grandin found a supportive environment that encouraged her intellectual curiosity and fostered her interest in science and engineering. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Franklin Pierce College, a master’s degree in animal science from Arizona State, and a PhD in animal science at the University of Illinois. In 1990, she joined Colorado State University as a professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
Perhaps Grandin’s nurturing mother left the deepest impression, one that encouraged Grandin to view her autism as an advantage —a unique gift. Her empathy for animals was shaped by her own distinctive sensory way of experiencing the world. This different way of looking at things led her to innovations in livestock management and more humane ways of treating animals.
Her most notable innovation is the “squeeze machine,” a device she originally designed for herself to calm her own anxiety. The machine applies gentle, evenly distributed pressure, which Grandin found soothing. Recognizing the calming effect of gentle pressure, she adapted this principle to improve livestock handling equipment. Her innovative curved chute design and other handling systems reduce animal stress and minimize injuries.
Grandin never lost sight of how unique she is, or of the gifts autism can offer. Her impact as an advocate for people with autism is just as recognized as her work with animals. At the core of each is empathy. When you treat, teach and encourage others from an empathetic place, you connect with the best parts of them. You instill in them a belief that they can be more, and in the process, you give them joy.
“Autism is who I am,” Grandin writes. “I had people in my life who didn’t give up on me: my mother, my aunt, my science teacher. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of a good teacher.”
Empathy… PassItOn.com®
Perhaps it started when Bob Geldof, first known for his punk band The Boomtown Rats, sang about a senseless act of violence in 1979 in his hit “I Don’t Like Mondays.”
The roots of his empathy ran deep. Geldof’s mother died when he was 6 years old, and he was bullied throughout his childhood. So while his music career was moving forward, Bob Geldof saw the unfairness in the world.
After performing at a charity concert for Amnesty International, he mobilized the music industry around the food crisis in Ethiopia. The 1984 effort created Band Aid, which brought together two dozen artists to record “Do They Know it’s Christmas?” It became the fastest seller of all time in the UK and sold nearly 12 million copies worldwide.
But it wasn’t enough. Economic realities in Africa created a food disparity that left most of the population starving. Geldof threw himself into the cause, using music as the solution. He formed Live Aid in 1985 and brought together the best-loved pop groups of the day for a live, 16-hour London concert broadcast on the BBC. Between numbers, Geldof delivered impassioned speeches calling for donations. He later said, “Mankind at its most desperate is often at its best.”
Geldof was desperate to create change. Live Aid raised over US $200 million. But there was still more to do. Geldof sought solutions that went beyond donations. He was appointed to the Commission for Africa by then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The commission dug deep into the root causes of poverty and drew up a detailed plan to reform trade rules, cancel debt and provide a continuation of aid. More concerts followed, and change began to take root.
Perhaps more important than the money raised is that a generation grew up knowing they could make a difference. From the street musicians to the live concerts in parks to the stadiums filled with fans, each is a nod to the work of Bob Geldof and the musicians he gathered for good. One song, one musician, one fan can, in Bob Geldof’s words “tilt the world a little bit in favor of the poor.”
Give... PassItOn.com®
Surgery is scary enough for any of us, but when you are a child, and everyone is bigger than you, it can feel like a nightmare. That’s why it matters so very much what happens before, during and after treatment — especially when what happens includes a bit of humor.
Modern medicine alleviates more pain and suffering for children than ever in world history — everything from removing an appendix, to hernias, to fixing broken bones and orthopedic problems, to cancer. Without these fixes, children can suffer socially and emotionally as well as physically. But it’s hard for a child to grasp the long-term benefits of surgery when confronted with bright lights and unfamiliar faces.
To help children find the courage to face these fears, a doctor in Colombia has special scrubs made for his little patients that change them from vulnerable humans to brave superheroes. He carries the patients through the hallway on his shoulder as they thrust their hands forward, parting the clouds of anxiety and soaring toward a better life, one that gives them confidence that they can overcome challenges.
Not surprisingly, the little superheroes also give their parents the courage to endure the wait while they are in the operating room. Patiently explaining a complicated surgery in medical terms does not always allay the fears. The doctor’s empathy may be felt, but building trust in the process needs more than a quick medical education. Seeing that their children trust the doctor allows parents the chance to take a deep breath, and knowing a doctor cares enough to address those fears in such a wonderful way is also a confidence-builder.
Even as modern medicine improves in dramatic ways, we humans will always need each other. Laughter is the best medicine. As Patch Adams, the real-life doctor immortalized on film by Robin Williams, says: “Laughter boosts the immune system and helps the body fight off disease, cancer cells as well as viral, bacterial and other infections. Being happy is the best cure of all diseases!”
One person, the right person, can lead a child to victory. That person doesn’t have to be a doctor or even a superhero. All one has to do is make a child feel courageous. We ensure the happiness of the world when we do so. So, let’s make superheroes of children, and heed the words of Patch Adams: “The reason adults should look as though they are having fun is to give kids a reason to want to grow up.” Be Super... PassItOn.com®
A smile is the most universally recognized language of friendship. It crosses cultures and bridges languages. It is the connection between friends and the bond between mothers and newborns. It is the first expression of love in an infant’s life.
That first smile is a baby’s recognition of her mother. It is the first shared awareness that the child knows how to connect. As we get older, it is the expression of contentment, happiness, love, forgiveness, empathy and reassurance. A smile can mean so many things that Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” is the most debated and recognized painting of all time.
For da Vinci, the smile represented the ideal of happiness — a concept that is hard to define. Perhaps that is why the Mona Lisa is so universally appreciated; everyone who looks on the warm colors, the relaxed hands, the confident posture and the contentment in the eyes sees their own life and the relationships they enjoy.
The Mona Lisa’s smile is a canvas for our own interpretations. The young mother may see the Mona Lisa as a maternal overseer, watching her children grow. The grandmother may see the growing family and reflections on a life well-lived. A young girl may see confidence in the future. And the husband may see an ideal to which he perhaps aspires, serenity amid the stresses of life.
How did the artist capture so much universal emotion in a single painting? This was da Vinci’s genius. He was a great observer of life. Born into what was described as the lower class, young da Vinci showed artistic promise. He began as an apprentice at age 14, which would have included grinding pigments, mixing paints and preparing canvases. He learned the chemistry of color and the mathematics of perspective. As he grew and learned from the masters of his period, he kept furious notes on everything, from how water currents moved to how light played on different surfaces.
He began his paintings by laying down the dark of the shadows and layering colors and glazes until the light felt like it was emerging from the surface. The subjects he chose to paint were often everyday townsfolk. He enjoyed the real lives of real people. He had a great love for his students and was revered for his gentle ways. A lifelong vegetarian, he also had a tender heart, often going to the market to buy caged birds only to release them.
Many art experts speculate that the Mona Lisa is a disguised self-portrait. Da Vinci was shy and handsome as a young man. It is said that he painted the simple portrait of a contented woman to capture the very idea of happiness in himself and as a universal emotion. It is that smile that has lasted all these years, a reminder that all of us can find our own happiness. And we can make others happy as well, with just a smile.
Smile... PassItOn.com®
Black Beauty is perhaps the most beloved horse of all time. The book named for him holds a special place in our hearts because it is narrated by Black Beauty himself, giving us impressive insight into how a horse might really feel.
Readers follow Black Beauty’s life from joy-filled foal to beleaguered workhorse to restful retiree. The book, which sheds light on the mistreatment of animals in the late 1800s, served as a catalyst for new laws that protected horses. But it was also Anna Sewell’s story.
Sewell was born in Great Yarmouth, England. She enjoyed a pleasant childhood until age 14, when she injured both her ankles in a fall. These injuries led to a debilitating condition that limited her mobility for the rest of her life. But in a way, this was her first gift. Relying on horses as her mode of transportation put her in close contact with these wonderful animals. She was seen often in horse-drawn carriages and occasionally on their backs. This intimate association deepened her empathy for these animals and contributed to the profound tenderness in her writing.
Toward the end of her life, Sewell struggled to even sit up for long periods of time. She embarked on writing as a way to pass the time. As she focused her work on the animals she had come to love, she hit upon the idea that a horse’s story is best told by the horse itself. And what better story than the entire life of Black Beauty, narrated by an empathetic voice that understood adversity as well as kindness, work and well-earned rest, abuse as well as love?
Sewell passed away just five months after the publication of Black Beauty. She never saw how the book would endure for generations, with tattered copies passed on from mothers to daughters and fathers to sons. Fifty million copies have been sold, and countless hearts have been touched.
For Sewell, being able to put emotions into words was the balm needed for an ailing heart and the invisible bulwark against depression. Sewell’s gift to us is her ability to make her life worth living. She taught us this lesson through the thoughts of a horse that understood the heartbreak of separation from loved ones, the physical abuse of a cruel world, and the tender, loving touch of the angels in our lives.
“It is good people who make good places,” Black Beauty tells us.
For Sewell, the reward was the writing itself. For us, it is the moments curled up with the little ones we love — and more deeply understanding the emotions we share by reading about a horse that is really all of us.
Beauty… PassItOn.com®
The enchanting stories of Rudyard Kipling owe their imaginative settings to the place he grew up: India.
Born in Bombay in 1865, young and quite privileged, Kipling spent his youth inspired by the vibrant colors and customs of colonial India. His voice rose out of the people he met, the jungles he explored, and the constant tension between formality and curiosity.
Best known for his “Jungle Book” stories, Kipling explored the relationship between man and animals, and between the animals themselves. He observed the hierarchies in the animal kingdom and the mercy humans are capable of, as well as the brutality of war.
Kipling’s literary voice was shaped as much by Indian fables as by English formal education. He spent time in tranquil British compounds, chaotic Indian cities, immersed himself in local folklore, and was jarred awake by the unsympathetic and sometimes cruel system of a formal British education when sent to an English boarding school.
As Imperial England expanded its borders, conflicts arose at the edges. After military school, the young Kipling returned to India to work as a journalist for an English publication, reporting on the activities of the British military. He soon began working on literary projects, gaining wide attention for his poem “Gunga Din,” a narrative that honors the lowly water carrier on the front lines, risking his seemingly insignificant life to save soldiers from dying of thirst.
“The Jungle Book” was next, and it was so original, so full of adventure, that schoolkids around the world embraced it almost immediately. The story, which has endured for over 150 years, follows the life of Mowgli, a boy left alone in the jungle and raised by a pack of wolves. It is a story of honor, of compassion, of revenge and redemption. But mostly, it is a story of a boy discovering, bit by bit, who he is. And in that way, it is the story of each of us.
It’s remarkable to read Kipling’s moral tales in “Just So Stories” for children, and his deeper, more reflective poems that grapple with the rapidly changing world of the 20th century. What we discover is a man, like Mowgli, searching for meaning, struggling to elevate his readers with observations and the object lessons of moral stories. When we look at his personal life, we see, at the center, his empathy.
Kipling lost a son to war. He lost a daughter to pneumonia at a young age. But he never lost his desire to alleviate suffering. He used his fame and resources to support military charities, raising money for war widows and ensuring that memorials were erected to remember the fallen. He supported libraries and schools with donations and lectures, often mentoring young writers personally. And he allocated many of his resources to alleviating poverty, particularly after natural disasters.
In Kipling’s poem, when a war-toughened soldier receives water from the lowly Gunga Din, the soldier has a change of heart. Though he has mistreated the boy, he recognizes in him a great strength of character. “You’re a better man than I, Gunga Din, Gunga Din ….”
Throughout all of Rudyard Kipling’s writing, we discover one continuous admonition: We can be better. Getting our observations down on paper helps us become more empathetic. And like Mowgli’s self-discovery, we see who we can become.
We Can Be Better… PassItOn.com®