These early challenges made it very difficult for him to locate and follow a good path toward a stable job. I have a friend who decided to learn more about another person’s story by becoming a mentor for a young man who faced many early disadvantages in life. The ability to recognize this can allow us to take a break from our own issues, give us better perspective, and allow us to regain the energy we need to appreciate the positives in our lives and even make a situation better for ourselves. The reality remains that other people may not be facing the same difficulties we are, but they certainly have their own obstacles to overcome. When our relationship is ending, we hop on social media and notice someone else recently renewing their vows. When we face health concerns, it seems as though everyone around us is not only in amazing shape, they are training to run a marathon. It does not help matters much that when we lose our job, it seems as though everyone around us is not only gainfully employed, they also have the lowest stress and highest paying job imaginable. When we are struggling with issues, the temptation is strong to spend every ounce of energy we have trying to figure out solutions. At any rate, one of the most essential realizations in life is that everyone has a story, and taking the time to remember this leads to a lot less judgment and a lot more compassion.
Some mental health professionals speculate that this lack of reading leads to decreased empathy among the younger generation: because they do not spend as much time immersing themselves in other peoples’ stories, they get less practice seeing things from other peoples’ points of view. I remember hearing recently that young people today read for pleasure far less than ever before, most likely due to the ever-increasing pull of technology. As soon as I start a new book, I begin to learn about the events, relationships, and natural tendencies that make up that person’s life story.
One of the reasons I love to read novels is the fact that they remind me that everyone has a story.
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