It was 1914. The British Army and the German Army were involved in hand to hand combat near Ypres during Wold War I.  It was brutal. Troops on both side were killed or injured in huge numbers. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in human history. Over 40 million military personnel and civilians perished in World War I.  In the month of December 1914, the thoughts of the soldiers went back to their loved ones as it was getting nearer to Christmas, the soldiers frequently sang Christmas Carols in the trenches. Sir Edward Hamilton Westrow Hulse, 7th Baronet and a British Army Officer with the Scots Guards wrote detailed accounts of life in the trenches during World War I. Describing what happened in December, Sir Edward wrote that he was organising a concert party on Christmas Day which would “give the enemy every conceivable form of song in harmony”…

When we are not standing in compassion, we are standing in shadow. And sadly, I see a lot of darkness around me at the moment.

So many of our problems can be traced back to matters of compassion, whether personal or collective. When compassion goes missing, problems arise or fester. And in compassion, we find solutions and solace.

Gary Zukav reminds us, “Love liberates. Fear imprisons.”

If we allow ourselves to feel our compassion, it changes how we live – because compassion is not a passive thing. It acts. It is interactive. It always occurs in relation.

The lack of compassion constitutes an action as well, sometimes expressing as a failure to act. All too often, of late, it also translates to adult bullying, hostility, and cruelty.

If we allow ourselves to feel our compassion, it compels us to change the things we can, not simply to wait…

Compassion (noun)
:sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it

At the root of compassion is the Latin words, “com” meaning, “with, together” and “pati” meaning, “to suffer”.  In the mid-14c. compassion or rather, “compassioun” meant “suffering with another”. Today’s definition includes a significant alteration, “a desire to alleviate” such suffering.  It is a significant change.

It is also a key ingredient in executing Wake the Nation’s vision, mission and goals. As the Wake the Nation team works to complete our 2019-2022 strategic framework we find ourselves defining the values that shape, support and reflect our philosophy. Compassion is at the core.

Compassion is the heartbeat that pumps motivation into our team. At the center of the organization’s circulatory system, it supplies inspiration, transports love enriched determination and creates momentum. Compassion is responsible for Wake the Nation’s movement.

Recognizing the stigma surrounding substance use disorder and…

Courage, conversation, compassion is what God says apparently. That was my initial word and changed it twice. Then this morning compassion came back.

Compassion is something we show another person when they are going through rough times.

It can be a random act of kindness.

It can be simply listening as someone shares their struggles.

It can be remembering where you came from before you pass judgement because another person is not as strong in their faith as you are NOW.

It can be trying to understand someone’s struggle, how they got there and why they want it to stop.

It can be a simple embrace.

It can be praying for someone you do not like because you have been in their shoes and wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

These are all forms of compassion we express and I could go on, but I believe you understand.

Without…