I wonder...

I wonder if it's possible to care about everybody? You'd genuinely be concerned about the lives of everyone you came in contact with. I'm thinking it's not. Maybe that's just me though.

I'm going to see over 400 people today. I just don't think it's possible to genuinely care about all of them. It's not like I wouldn't be alarmed by some tragic occurrence...it's just that in all likelihood, some of them are going to cry about something today...some of them will be depressed...some will be excited about something that I just don't care about or value.

It's just true.

I know a few people that seem to care about everyone they see. I just sort of doubt that. I have a friend that has a world class fake laugh. He's really fun to be around because he's always laughing. People love that. I just happen to know him really well...and I respect his sense of humor enough to know that often he's faking it. He admits it to me.
I wonder if people have fake caring faces. They might have a fake look of concern, a fake look of -I'm genuinely happy for you and a fake look of - awww I'm sorry you had to deal with that.

I guess some people probably do. Too bad, huh?

Maybe instead of trying to develop a fake laugh and fake looks of concern I can try and care for one extra person today. It's possible that it's something that you can develop. Maybe it's like lifting weights...at first it's hard to lift the bar up (for guys like Fuller) but pretty soon...after months of trying...you're lifting 250 lbs. At first you feel like passing out when you run a mile...and before you know it, you're running mini marathons. Maybe this is where those cheesy "God's gym" t-shirts came from???

Today I could stop focusing on me for a few minutes and take the time to get to know someone I'd usually just say hi to. If I take the time to think through, "How would I feel about what they're going through?" then maybe I'll have a little bit of empathy. It's funny how to develop empathy I have to think through how something would affect me.
It's sort of selfish at the core. Maybe we start from a selfish place and gradually begin to look at others needs???

Either way, I want to be more concerned with what's going on in the lives of the people around me. I just need to realize that right now I'm barely getting the bar off the bench...but it's a start.