STIRRING OUR COMPASSION

Jose Marti (1853-1895) Cuban poet wrote, “People need someone to stir their compassion often, to make their tears flow, and to give their souls the supreme benefit of generous feelings. For through the wonderful compensation of nature they who give of themselves, grow; and they who withdraw into themselves, living for small pleasures and afraid to share them with others, thinking only of greedily satisfying their own appetites, will gradually change from a human into pure solitude, carrying in their hearts all the gray hair of wintertime.” (Source: “Wandering Teachers” published in La America, May 1894.)
Many of us do not have a shepherd, or someone, that can stir our compassion. Someone who can “make our tears flow, give our souls the benefit of generous feelings.” Someone who can make us bigger and better while keeping us from “carrying in our hearts all the gray hair of wintertime.” For those who do have that person… they are fortunate. For those who don’t… go look for a shepherd like a shepherd looks for sheep.
“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Jesus