When you see someone who is down on their luck don’t pity them.  When you see someone who has lost faith in the world don’t pity them.  When you see someone who is grieving don’t pity them.  Pity doesn’t feed them or pay the bills, pity doesn’t shine a light for someone to hold on to, pity won’t help them to grieve.  All of these people don’t want your pity, they want your love and understanding.  They want a shoulder to lean on even if it’s only for five minutes.  There are always ways of giving without them feeling in debt to you whether it’s a little bit of money or a little bit of your time.  Don’t confuse pity with comfort, with love or with compassion.  Pity is feeling sorry for someone, saying a few empty meaningless words such as ‘I know how you feel’ when you yourself have never been in their situation, then carrying on as if nothing has happened.  Comfort, love and compassions are helping with genuine feeling and letting them know that you really care.  Pity is defined in the dictionary as ‘a feeling of tenderness aroused by distress or suffering’.  Don’t let it just be a feeling, let it be an ACT of tenderness.