The Highest Denominator
An Invitation to Compassion in a Time of Cruelty
Instead, this is a call to stay awake in the face of it, and to choose a different way to respond.
Compassion
These days are marked by fear and division. Yet within the chaos and noise, compassion remains one of the most transformative acts we can make. This simple act is the highest common denominator. It’s not only powerful, it may be our only real and lasting solution.
Human beings are hard-wired to resist change. Fear feeds distrust, and distrust oftern turns to hate. But it is precisely this inner shift that’s most needed and also most feared.
The radical act of choosing compassion asks us to rewire our perspective, to question familiar patterns, and to stretch beyond what’s become comfortable. It’s not easy. But it is necessary. In fact, it may be the most essential act of our time.
The Danger of Only Looking Outward
Yes, external systems need to change. But when we place the entire burden of transformation on the outside world, we render ourselves powerless. We point fingers in blame: “They did it.” “He started it.” “She’s to blame.” —as if this were a schoolyard fight. This cycle of blame is both childish and corrosive. Each time we lash out in anger and blame—we decay. While we rage, the work of healing the world and ourselves is neglected.
The Power of Inner Change
Change begins within. Every choice to rise above old patterns, every personal act of integrity, and every moment we resist the urge to harm another is where we make the shift. This is how we change the world: in the gentle, repeated acts of choosing a better way.
Each day, we are under siege: From society. From social media. From environments that tell us we’re not enough. From people too wounded to notice the harm they cause. But the greatest cruelty is often the one we quietly direct inward. It starts in small, familiar ways: A glance in the mirror paired with a cruel thought about our own reflection which is too much or not enough.
These assaults are constant. And we’ve become numb to their violence. But you can begin to shift that dialogue. Next time, when you meet your own gaze, speak a word of kindness to yourself. Say something honest and good such as You are worthy. You are more than enough.
The World Around Us
Now, turn your attention outward. Offer kindness, however small: A warm word. A genuine compliment. A pause to listen. You may never know how much it means to someone else, but it does. It matters. It matters a lot.
There’s a myth we’ve somehow acquired—that lifting others somehow diminishes us. That their rise is our fall. That there’s only so much room at the top. But this is not true.
We don't grow taller by keeping others down. We grow taller by lifting each other up.
And this is how we change the world.
*This is a repost and rework of something I posted a few years ago. It is more timely now.
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