#pat

He came up straight to her father, whose hands he took and wrung without a word - holding them in his for a minute or two, during which time his face, his eyes, his look, told of more sympathy than could be put into words. ↗

— Elizabeth Gaskell

#sadness #empathy

I felt the kind of desperation, I think, that cancels the possibility of empathy...that makes you unkind. ↗

— Sue Miller

#empathy #unkindness #empathy

When people say they are happy for you it may mean they are sad for themselves. ↗

— Josephine Humphreys

#happiness #sadness #true-colors #empathy

Loss of empathy might well be the most enduring and deep-cutting scar of all, the silent blade of an unseen emey, tearing at our hearts and stealing more than our strength- Drizzt Do'Urden ↗

— R.A. Salvatore

#empathy

The glory of fame isn't in having so many people know you, but in having so many people know you care. Otherwise, it's like being drawn to a fire to find no warmth. ↗

— Richelle E. Goodrich

#caring #empathy #esteem #fame #fire

I could really use someone else's smile today. ↗

— Richelle E. Goodrich

#empathy #helping #helping-others #kindness #richelle

Most of us tend to belittle all suffering except our own," said Mary. "I think it's fear. We don't want to come too near in case we're sucked in and have to share it. ↗

— Elizabeth Goudge

#fear #suffering #empathy

As far as you can, get into the habit of asking yourself in relation to any action taken by another: "What is his point of reference here?" But begin with yourself: examine yourself first. ↗

— Marcus Aurelius

#frame-of-reference #questioning #self-actualization #empathy

It's not about winning, Haven. I'm not a prize to be won. I'm not the princess that needs rescuing from the dragon. I'm the prince and I kill my own monsters. You need to be ok with that. -Anita Blake ↗

— Laurell K. Hamilton

#dragons

What are you?' he [Nanapush] said to Damien, who was deep in a meditation over his [chess] bishop's trajectory. 'A priest' said Father Damien 'A man priest or a woman priest?'... ...'I am a priest', she whispered, hoarsely, fierce. 'Why' said Nanapush kindly, as though Father Damien hadn't answered, to put the question to rest, 'are you pretending to be a man priest? ↗

— Louise Erdrich

#gender-roles #native-american-reservation #patriarchy #priest #catholicism