What do you understand by compassion?

Compassion is a term used to refer to the desire of helping someone in suffering and going on further to taking action to make them feel better. Here your lifting people out of their misery and putting a smile back on their faces. So we relate compassion more with offering a solution to the problem someone is facing.

Who can show it and why?

Anyone can show compassion and everyone should show it. This because many people around us are going through difficult times, and we are in a position to help them go through it. And when you help, happiness follows. You'll always be a happy person when your compassionate to others. The bond with the people you help will be much more than before.

Have you shown someone compassion, how did you do that and how did the recipient feel?

Yes I've shown several people compassion. I once offered a stranger accommodation at my place. This happened a few weeks back when I was traveling from village where I had been forced to stay for 3 months. This is because the government of Uganda had locked down public transport among the many measures to reduce the spread of Covid 19. Curfew had also been imposed where no one was expected to be out of his/her home by 7pm. I was using a taxi van to travel a 200km journey and seated next to me was a woman who looked to be in her early 40s. Unfortunately curfew time got us still on the way but I was about to reach my destination. The woman next to me still had another 150km to cover and was meant to board another van to take her to her destination. I overheard her talking on phone with her people who were residing within the area the van was meant to stop. She was begging them to accommodate her for the night so she can travel early the next day but none of them accepted. Noticing the misery she was in, I decided to help her. I told her she could sleep over at my place and set off to her destination early in the morning. She was really happy, she couldn't believe it because she had not even requested me for a place to stay. We managed to reach my place and she slept over and travelled early as she had arranged. To this day, this woman sends me texts thanking me for the favour I offered her and she badly wants to meet me again.

Has anyone shown you compassion before and how did you feel when it was shown to you?

Yes, people often show me compassion. I once had a friend at work take me to hospital and pay my full medical bill. I got a sudden fever while at work. I felt a lot of headache that I could not stand up, I would actually feel dizzy whenever I tried to. So I called my friend Alice and talked to her about it. Alice got so concerned and decided to end her day at work to walk me to a nearby health centre. At the hospital, I tested positive for acute malaria and got admitted immediately. The doctors needed us to deposit some money for the bill that day but Alice instead cleared all the expenses. I spent 2 days at the hospital before I got discharged. I was really grateful to Alice for taking care of me. This was a true friend in need. I repaid back the money she used to pay for my bill, although she hadn't even requested for it.

Express your compassion to someone in a practical way.

I have a friend who is about to give birth to her second child, her name is Rose. Lately she has been having a lot of stress which she says is from her husband who has started acting strange to her. So I decided to set some time off this weekend to pay her a visit and see how I can help her. She was glad to have me at her place and opened up to me what she was going through. She said the man doesn't take care of her like he used to and comes home late without even communicating. I knew she needed some love and emotional support around her, so I decided to spend the whole day with her to make her relax. ![IMG_20211008_114307.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmXArSDScemQcNhADHREthN1cVvEfnmnyakaahHJN22ohr/IMG_20211008_114307.jpg) Here I was helping unplait Rose's hair. ![IMG_20211008_103422.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmSc1iEsSDLsbHZRNNCg7WZj1knVYqrdxGEJqCdsBuBBST/IMG_20211008_103422.jpg) This is her first born. I had carried a few eats for him, he seemed to be enjoying himself. ![IMG_20211008_103836-1.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmSRrZ48iHStsBuDGG9qNvJcJqfnLzKzNg7Et1WcuErov9/IMG_20211008_103836-1.jpg) I advised Rose about the dangers of stress during pregnancy and told her to always find a way to relax herself for the main benefit of her health and the health of the baby she's carrying.

Do you think compassion is a virtue that should be cultivated by all and be demonstrated in a practical way?

Yes, compassion is a virtue that should be cultivated by all of us because of the benefits that come with it; both individually and to the society we live in. And it should be demonstrated in a practical way. When we look at some of the great people; Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Ghandi, Mother Teresa, among others, they show you the big influence they brought in the world by just showing compassion to people. Their works are still inspiring people many years after their passing.

How did you learn to show compassion and where?

I was raised in a strong Christian home. My parents not only preached Christian values but they always practised them. They could not let anyone surrounding them to be sad, from we the children to people in the neighbourhood. However big the problem someone was facing, they would try their best to find a solution even when it needed funding. They would go as far as fundraising for someone incase they didn't have enough money. Growing up in such an environment made me learn how to show compassion.

How will the world look like if everyone cultivates this quality?

The world is full of hate, violence, crime which people express because of their selfish interests. With compassion, this negative way of treating people will be reduced. Everyone deserves to be shown compassion, love and kindness to make the world a happier and peaceful place to live in. Thankyou @steemkidss for yet another contest to learn something from. I invite; @shadia931 @nathaniel743 @vianneyspirit