Today I got a great opportunity to work on a production for a culture and promotional video for the Cancer Treatment Centers of America.  I say “work” loosely because I really didn’t do much.  I am still new to this video production game so I was there to simply observe, do what I was told, and not screw up the shot!  I am happy to say I was successful at those goals.

What I didn’t expect was to be so moved by what I saw today.  I saw dozens of people talk about how they felt when they were diagnosed with cancer and how they dealt with the treatments.  They talked about all of the help they received along the way and how their and their families lives were changed.  They didn’t even have to get into the fact that they actually had their lives saved by the physicians and technology at the facility.  They talked about how the caring nature and the experience that changed their lives…it was amazing and emotional.

Given the industry that I am in, I do not have the exposure to these types of moments.  It was great to see that coping happens on so many different levels and as drastic as the situations may be there are a lot of emotions that overlap.  When you go through a tragedy you feel so alone in the instance that you have a difficult time knowing how to cope.  I saw today people who didn’t go through the loss of a child the way that my wife and I did but they went through situations equally as emotional and I saw that they coped in much the way that we have.  We may not all go through the same tragedies in life, but we inevitably will have to face some kind of adversity.  It is comforting to know that no matter what he scenario we, as humans, all have the compassion to cope.  At least I hope that we do.

A bit of a ramble, I know…if you take anything from this, take the understanding that no matter what you are going through, others are going through things as well.  Be compassionate and don’t judge the situation…odds are you have no idea.  But also know that your coping is similar to theirs and simply being compassionate will help.

J