Let me go "Society-Joker" mode for a minute here, cuz' there's been something on my mind for a hot minute:

Everyone's been told that compassion is a sign of weakness. Every generation, boy and girl alike, at least in the West, has had this lingering ghost over their backs whispering "your kindness is a weakness. Squash it." Think about it. You see it in public, when dudes are laughed at for being compassionate and "unmanly" or something like that. You see it in the news and in arguments, when a woman being compassionate is a sign of them being a "traditional and submissive traitor" or something like that (I don't know if any woman in person has been told stuff like that offline; I'm a dude and can only really fully know one side of this situation, but my point is that it happens to everyone). Even when compassion is encouraged (whether sincere or not), like with children or environmental expectations, there's usually this sense of condescendence with it: "You're a kid; you're supposed to be stupid and nice to people. You're a young woman in a traditional environment; you're supposed to be submissive and loving. You're a man who's a bit scrawnier; you're supposed to be a pushover and weak."

I just want to quickly say that this is a lie from the deepest pit of Hell.
Compassion is probably the only thing keeping anything together right now. It's the folks brave enough to be kind that give us the courage to go on living, isn't it? It's the ones who are willing to be called weak in the hopes of making others stronger that really prove they're the Atlases of out society and our sanity. Kindness is not weakness, but rather the greatest strength under the greatest humility.

Just wanted to thrust these thoughts somewhere real quick; it was on my mind, and if I got anything wrong about how it seems to feel right now for you guys, please do tell me. I'd love to hear some input on this (whatever this really is). Thanks for reading, friends.