If you've spoken with me for more than five minutes and/or read more than one of the other posts on this website, you know how I feel about romance novels. I know there are some lousy ones out there, but so many of them are wonderful. Just for the Summer is one such book. I particularly liked the female protagonist's mantra that "if you have a choice between anger and empathy, choose empathy."
I'm not usually quick to jump to anger, but I do leap to undesirable emotions, such as self-righteousness and know-it-all-ness. Often, when I forget to remind myself that we're all doing the best we can with the choices we understand, I act in ways that are, at best not productive and at more likely, harmful. Remembering to lead with empathy helps me get to a more useful stance of curiosity. Taking the time to ask, "Hmm, why would that person do that?" often allows me to think about others' choices in the same way I think about my own. Rather than assuming I know better or have more information to make an informed decision, I try to acknowledge that I can't know what led another person to any given moment. All I can do is try to choose empathy when thinking about others, which is, of course, exactly what I would want them to do for me.
Have you had moments when you made the choice to go with empathy rather than another emotion? Which one? Why? How'd it work out? Please share your responses in the comments.