From Bandaids to Water Bottles, Be Curious About the Power of Empathy

“The only way to survive is by taking care of one another.”
– Grace Lee Boggs

#1 – A Bandaid

The contemplative writing session at the Wild Goose Festival had just ended on a hot Saturday morning in North Carolina. As I stood up to leave the round table under the tent outside, I felt something crash at my feet.

I quickly looked down to see an elderly woman falling in the grass beside me.

I and others immediately stooped to the ground, asking her, “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

She tried to quickly gain her composure and rise to her feet. She said she falls a lot. She had simply lost her balance on the uneven ground, but she was totally fine.

But the blood on her hand suggested otherwise. She had cut her finger during the fall. One person handed her a tissue to wipe off the blood, and my on-the-spot husband, Jeff, walked up just in time to offer a bandaid.

She put on the bandaid, smiled, and thanked everyone for their help, saying she had never received so much kind attention after a fall.

#2 – A Water Bottle

Later that afternoon, I was taking a break from the heat at a picnic table under the shade of a big tree at Wild Goose. A six-year-old girl and her older sister were playing with a squeeze water bottle nearby.

They approached my table and asked for a napkin. “Of course,” I replied, “What are you doing?”

“Oh,” the youngest girl said, “We’re helping the Goose! There is a really dirty chair over there, and we’re going to clean it up.”

What a wonderful way to help! Her unprompted generosity, no matter the size, struck me as both beautiful and valuable.

#3 – An Understanding

That same Saturday afternoon, a crowd had gathered under another tent to hear Starlette Thomas read to us from her book, Take Me to the Water, about a raceless gospel for a desegregated church.

A few minutes into the session, a man sitting to my left raised his hand with a question. But he became increasingly agitated as he spoke. Despite Starlette’s gracious responses, he refused to back down.

The more he talked, the more heated he became, now standing up to make his point. Others in the crowd began mumbling, wondering what he would say next.

A woman near me finally asked the man to sit back down, stating that we wanted to continue hearing what the speaker had to say. But the man still stood.

A second man near the back now also stood up. He said he recognized this man had things he needed to say, and would he be willing to go sit under the tree with him for a few minutes and privately talk it out?

Thankfully the first man said yes, and they both walked away. We all breathed a sign of relief.

The speaker, Starlette, looked at the remaining crowd like a reassuring parent. She told us she was fine, and asked if we were okay. We asked what she thought of the man.

She sat down on the stage, and gave us this response: “I think he is beloved. He is a child of God. He is on his journey.”

She obviously wasn’t flustered nor angry, but was compassionate and understanding. She said she’s faced much harder. This is how we process life and grow along the way.

This is the work.

For all of us.

Stay Curious About Empathy

A bandaid. A water bottle. An understanding. In each of these three moments at the Wild Goose Festival, I saw demonstrations of the beauty of empathy. Each act, though unexpected, revealed the power of human kindness.

As I reflect on my journey with Curiosity this year—with a specific curious focus on empathy these past few weeks—I am reminded of these lyrics:

“Let me tell you ’bout the situation goin’ on
All around the world today
There’s a billion different people
Doin’ a billion different things
To make a billion places better today”

Of our billion opportunities, what is one thing we can do in this moment to make the world a better place today?

May we each stay curious and act empathically wherever we find ourselves, using whatever we have to give, no matter how small or large.


Share your thoughts in the comments.

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21 thoughts on “From Bandaids to Water Bottles, Be Curious About the Power of Empathy

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      You’re so right, Martha: “No act of kindness with empathy goes unnoticed.” That reminds me of the story of the person at the beach who was throwing starfish back into the sea. When told it wouldn’t make any difference, they responded it would make a difference to that one! That is so true with those we are empathetic with, and when others show empathy to us.

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      Thank you, Donna. It helped me to write out these stories so I could embed them deeper into my memory, remembering that people really ARE good for the most part!

  1. Barbara Harper

    What a gracious response from Starlette. It would help so much with interpersonal conflicts if we kept that perspective in mind–that each person is created by God. I appreciate hearing about these thoughtful acts of kindness, especially the man who invited the agitated man to air his grievances privately. I don’t think I would have thought of that, and probably would have been afraid to make the offer even if I did think of it.

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      I didn’t think either about asking the first man to step outside and talk. I was glad that someone did though! I might have thought of it a few days later. ha. But even if I had thought of it, I likely wouldn’t have had the courage in the moment to do it either. After the whole session was over, the second man (he had come back by then) also volunteered to stay a few extra minutes for any of us that needed to process what had happened. I wasn’t able to stay, but I saw several who did. Such a beautiful offer!

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      Thanks, Steph. It’s funny how some days we run across so many examples of empathy! I am storing these memories up for those days when I don’t see it enough.

  2. Nellie

    Lisa,
    Really enjoyed your post, and think you are more than right about being kind and empathetic……..in todays world it is needed more than ever. I love that you see the beauty in all of these incidents, as so many miss that. We had a wonderful thing
    happen to us in the grocery store that we thought was awesome and intentional.
    Our young grocery store clerk checking us out was so sweet and friendly and we got into a conversation about her name (Brielle) which she launched us into a conversation about Brie cheese, and then a lady came behind us and said what are yall talking about and so she got in the conversation and it was just a lovely few minutes that felt like old times. I thanked them both when we left and the one lady said I think there needs to be more of this and I said I couldn’t agree more, as we try to be very intentional about being kind and talking and smiling at people when we are out, but I am also so happy to see that so many others are doing the same………….Amazing, small but still Amazing and Wonderful.
    thanks for your sweet post and incites.
    Blessings, Nellie

    1. LisaNotes Post author

      Oh, what a sweet story, Nellie! Sweet Brielle sounds like such a treasure. I’m sure that working with the public is difficult, so it is especially refreshing when we run into someone like her. And customers like you! As a customer I’m not always willing to engage. I’m often guilty of just wanting to rush in and rush out with no time for chit-chat. But it’s those small gestures of conversation and kindness that can leave great impacts on our souls, and ripple out into the betterment of the world at large. Thanks so much for sharing this us here!

  3. Lisa Blair

    The speaker’s handling of the irate listener is inspiring, as is the fellow listener who gave up his time to help the troubled man, the speaker and fellow listeners have a positive experience.

  4. Lois Flowers

    Lisa, I’m so touched by the way the second man invited the agitated one to talk privately. I never would have thought of that! It sounds like the Wild Goose Festival was full of heart-warming experiences for you. I’m glad you shared these here.

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