By Catholic Partnership Schools Healthy Courier reporters | “Empathy is the ability to recognize, understand, and share the thoughts and feelings of another person, animal, or fictional character,” according to Psychology Today magazine.

Showing empathy to others, can strengthen your community and increase people’s feelings of belonging, according to Harvard University’s Making Caring Common Project. The Healthy Courier staff offers these examples of what empathy can look like:

•   Talking to someone
•   Listening to someone
•   Giving someone a gift
•   Being attentive
•   Comforting someone
•   Sending someone a message “I’m here for you”
•   Saying “hello” to someone you may not be close with
•   Smiling at someone

Illustration by Maria, eighth grade, Catholic Partnership Schools.