I have always prided myself on being empathetic.
Empathy is said to be the virtue by which you can put yourself in other's shoes to try & understand their perspective.
It may sometimes be confused with Sympathy but it's not the same thing or so I am told.
You may ask how it came to pass that I know I am empathetic when I have only the very foggiest idea that it is somewhat different to sympathetic...
I have to say, you have a valid point.
Well then, if you must know, I was blissfully ignorant of "Empathy" until I took one of those quizzes on Tickle.com that's supposed to tell you which character trait you are big on or something along those lines....
And I came out to be strongest on Empathy.
So there, now you know how it all started.
In any case as I was saying....
Once I knew I was Empathetic I started taking exceptional pride in in.
I mean Tickle said it was quite rare
And Wikipedia I believe said it was a "highly sophisticated subconscious processing" [although it also did say something about a flip side to the coin as well....but well what the heck?!!!]
In any case I decided to really notch things up a bit.
So, I started cultivating this habit of actually consciously making an effort of looking at things from atleast 3 different points of view:
A] The "perpetrator-of -a-act"-'s view
B] The "one-acted-upon/victimised (if you say so)"-'s view
And C] The "passive-bystander"-'s view
Thus was born 3 Voices in my head in addition to the one everyone has (or so I am told...again!) since like forever, the "nagging-conscience" or something crappy like that I think it is called.
These 4 Voices were always to be consulted before any verdict was to be passed.
They were a sort of jury.
Or a cabinet of ministers if you may
I would put everything up for a vote
And only then would I make a decision
That was to be my modus operandi henceforth
At first it went somewhat smoothly
But soon it turned a bit rough....yet mostly manageable
Then there was a huge fight
Then a stand off
An ego clash
And a monstrous delay
I ran around in my head from 1 Voice to the next
But then they were either busy at each other's neck
Or not on speaking terms with the rest.
I was distraught
This wasn't how Tickle said it worked
This wasn't how I had envisioned it would work
And most of all this wasn't what I had bargained for...at all!
All these Voices screaming around in my head all day long...
Sometimes holding a heated but intelligent debate
And sometimes just taking a cheap snipe at another when they thought the latter wasn't looking
was making for really really noisy innards
A complete Pandemonium!
This was simply ridiculous----I had created not 1 but 3 Frankenstein!
Didn't these Voices realise they were born of a supposedly rare noble virtue called "Empathy"?
They were not supposed to act in this juvenile manner!
They were supposed to act very very responsibly so as to make me this shinning paragon of Empathy who worked only in the best manner possible for all parties involved in any given situation and hence bring forth betterment of society and mankind as a whole!
Apparently they didn't!
They were only serving to make me terribly confused with all their differing points of view!
And Tickle didn't seem to think this situation was any of it's concerns
Cause it didn't mention anything about handling silly voices in one's head in it's test results
And trust me, I checked!
Darn! I should have known Wikipedia was trying to tell me something there...
However I am not the kind that lets Tickle pull one over me
So I found a solution
Necessity is the mother of Invention afterall (or so I am told....yet again!)
So, I simply picked out my favourite from amongst the four in any given situation
I mean, if I happended to be the perpetrator of the concerned act it was the "perpetrator-of-a-act" Voice I favoured
If I was the one acted upon, (the victim!) it was automatically the "one-acted-upon/victimised" Voice I listened to partially
And if I was merely a passive bystander I let Conscience make a short sweet speech and then I picked sides with either the perpetrator or the victim as maybe the case depending on the fringe benefits!
So you see, like I said i am Empathetic
And I have always prided myself on it!
And now look what I found in another blog:::
"Empathy- Your inner power is Empathy! This means that you have a talent for identifying others emotions, often by simply glancing at them. You're EXTREMELY shy and quiet. People sometimes dont notice you are around and seem surprised to find out you even exist in a big class. You're the often silent, goody two shoes, and few get passed the walls you've built up to stop yourself being hurt, as you no doubt have been in the past. Not everyone understands you, in fact some think that you're a snob or worse because you rarely participate in group activities. You're extremely sensitive, even the least harsh of words can hurt you. Only your very few, closest friends who have earned your hard-to-get trust know who you really are inside; a sweet, gentle young woman who is lonely and so desperately needing friends to support you. You can get very depressed and not always know why, despite your power of empathy, as it seems to only work for people outside you. Your friends always turn to you when they need advice or comforting, and in some way you need to give that help-it makes you feel better in return to know that youve helped out your friends. Despite your cold, impassive exterior and high, seemingly unbreachable walls, inside you are really a great, intelligent person, full of compassion and love, if only people would dare take a chance and try to get through your tough shell. Never let others get you down, or change you. You are very special the way you are even if you dont have fifty thousand friends, you are just as, if not more, extraordinary than everyone else. Reach for the stars, because I dont doubt you'll catch hold of them. Boy/Girl who will sweep you off your feet: A sweet, shy and romantic man/woman. The kind of guy/woman you know will never, ever hurt you, and will love you for ever. The kind of person who believes in true love, and soul mates. Your stone: Blue Topaz Your power: Healing. Emotionally, physically, or spiritually, you heal people with your words, your actions and presence. Youre the one that the little children are always drawn to, because they know you'll never let anything hurt them. Your element: Clairvoyance (The power to see objects or events that cannot be perceived by the normal five senses.) A quote that applies to you: "True beauty shines from the soul and warms the world with its kindness, compassion , and integrity."
Hrmph!
