Compassion has the ability to empower each and every one of us. I was reminded of this recently when I held a high tea for volunteers at my Foundation. As usual I overshared my stories; I talked about my time in Calais, France.
After my talk a lady came up to me. “One time when I was volunteering with you I noticed a young man in rags and bare feet”, she said. “When I looked closer I realised he was my brother!” It turns out her brother had just been released from jail.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot. I realise there are only six degrees of separation between any one of us. Chances are that six people we know can link us to anyone else on the planet – from Sydney to Calais. That really makes all of us one another’s brothers and sisters.
Compassion in Calais
In Calais I worked with teams doing their best to help thousands of refugees on their way to England. Many of the refugees came from the most dangerous parts of the world and suffered enormously in their own countries.
In spite of that the French authorities saw them as cockroaches and treated them accordingly. Riot police were used to ‘control’ the refugees. Often beating them up, using tear gas and destroying their few possessions. Little children often witnessed all of this.
The teams of volunteers who helped these poor souls were mostly young. They came from all over the world, and they were all imbued with a spirit of social justice. I worked with a group trying to de-traumatise the children.
Each volunteer group worked from a booth in a big warehouse, half of which was a kitchen. There, they prepared around 1,600 meals a day to give to the hungry refugees. At lunch time we all came together to share in a meal.
Individuals making things better together
I sat with them on a day when there were around 70 volunteers. All gathered together I could see the goodness in them. I realised they were all working for the betterment of their damaged brothers and sisters.
We human beings can’t deny the fact that we’re all inter-related. We can’t deny the fact that loving compassion is the gift that empowers, strengthens and enables us.
It is also through loving compassion that we discover ourselves. When that happens we emerge stronger than ever.
As I witnessed in Calais, it really is loving compassion that shapes the best in humanity.
