Empathy Is About the Ability to Become Someone Else
M. Zakyuddin Munziri
@zakiego
Originally written in Bahasa Indonesia.
Every time it rains, I only think about the air turning cold.
But my friend has a different perspective. When it rains, especially on Monday nights, she always thinks about the people selling things in front of her boarding house.
Something that never crossed my mind. Why? Because I have never been in that moment—when rain falls and I see someone trying to sell their goods.
The essence of empathy is about the ability to become someone else. Understanding others becomes much easier when we have been in the same position.
When you have experienced the hardship of finding food to eat, it becomes easy to understand others who are starving, and then offer them help with food.
