Do You Run Toward Grief?

Or do you run away?

In my fairly extensive experience, people who can run away from grief often do.

We are mirroring creatures. We are afraid others’ grief will bring us grief.

If we are capable of empathy, others’ grief does bring us grief.

Leading many people to turn away from others’ grief.

I have meditated for the past few years using the Ten Percent Happier app launched by Dan Harris. One of my favorite meditation teachers on the app is George Mumford, who coached famous athletes including basketball greats Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant to use mindfulness to improve their performance. As Harris would say, “George is a cool dude.”

In one of Mumford’s guided meditations, he talks about compassion as the natural movement of the heart toward those in suffering. He gives the example of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. The second explosion hurt and killed more victims because they had run to provide ai…