Category Archives: Compassion

The kiss of understanding

Posted on June 12, 2017 by vincentsmithauthor

The great pianist Paderewski once went to hear a friend’s daughter give a piano recital. But when the little girl saw the great man in the audience, she got stage fright, forgot her piece and broke down in tears. At … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, Encouragement, God with us, understanding | Leave a comment

No one laughed at her anymore

Posted on September 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

Children can often be cruel to another child who is different, and sometimes they can be wonderful too. A teacher told about having a girl in her class who had special needs. One day she overheard some of the boys … Continue reading →

Posted in children, Christlikeness, Compassion, Cruelty | Leave a comment

The magical mustard seed

Posted on April 29, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s an old Chinese story about a woman whose only son had died. She went to a holy man and asked him for something that would bring her son back. But instead, the wise old man told her to bring … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, Grief, Healing, Selflessness, Sorrow | Tagged | Leave a comment

Life, hope and God come to us in the form of people.

Posted on March 23, 2016 by vincentsmithauthor

A teacher, whose job was to visit children in a city hospital, was assigned to a boy who had been badly burned. The child was in so much pain that he barely responded, and the teacher felt ashamed at putting … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, God, Hope, Life, love, Loving other people | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Reflect on the ‘Maggies’

Posted on December 20, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

Hidden away in a Dublin park is a bench with a plaque that says: ‘To the women who worked in the Magdalen laundry institutions — reflect here upon their lives.’ The Magdalen laundries, named after Mary Magdalene, belonged to an … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, Forgiveness, Judgementalism, New Life | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Kennedy and God

Posted on September 29, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

When the late President Kennedy’s son Patrick, suffering from a lung ailment, was fighting for his life, his father went to see him in a part of the hospital specially cleared of all visitors. On his way there he passed … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, God, God's love, Suffering, Suffering love, Sympathy and Support | Tagged | Leave a comment

Clothed with kindness

Posted on June 26, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

Researchers from the University of Utah found there’s a price to pay when couples don’t get along. They found that women who buried anger were more likely to succumb to heart disease than wives who were vocal, and that women … Continue reading →

Posted in Abundant life, Compassion, Gentleness, Healing, humility, Kindness, Patience, relationships | Leave a comment

It helps when you carry someone with you

Posted on May 27, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s a story about a tribe of Red Indians who lived alongside a dangerous river and got attacked by a hostile group of settlers. They found themselves outnumbered and with their backs against the river. Their only chance for escape … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, Kindness, Life's journey, Living Life, love, Selflessness, supportive community | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Virtue is not a commodity

Posted on May 11, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

There’s a story about a wealthy man who gave his minister a cheque for fifty thousand dollars made out to the church. The minister, however, handed it back and said: ‘Go and cash it in for five dollar bills and … Continue reading →

Posted in Acts of Kindness, Compassion, Doing what has to be done, love, Sympathy and Support | Tagged | Leave a comment

It’s not enough just to observe

Posted on March 20, 2015 by vincentsmithauthor

Some years ago Photojournalist Kevin Carter won a Pulitzer Prize with a picture of a starving Sudanese child crawling toward a feeding center while a vulture stared at him. That image drew international attention to both Sudan’s suffering and to … Continue reading →

Posted in Compassion, Indifference, Pain, Suffering, Sympathy and Support | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment