The Power Of Empathy

Blogging Friends.... So about those Rose stories which I have promised. Despite the very fact that they've been accumulating lately like soft snowflakes, I cannot seem to get it together!! Sigh.... It probably does not help that I haven't enjoyed an entire night's sleep in three consecutive days, and I'm feeling overwhelmed right now!! Oh well. I promised "next week" for the story. Correct? This week is not yet over!! I still have five days left!!

 

One of the hardest parts about being a devout fanatic of Robert Downey Jr.'s is how frequently journalists and Bloggers alike dig up his regrettable past, then make wild accusations surrounding it. Last week, I was Google-searching Robert Downey Jr., when my eyes spied these words. "Let's discuss this Robert Downey Jr. headshot from 1985". Uh, okay. I do not like pictures of Robert Downey Jr. young, and in a nonjudgmental sort of way. However. I was very, very, very intrigued by those words!! "Let's discuss this Robert Downey Jr. headshot from 1985". So, I clicked on it. At my own risk. I read the title. "Robert Downey Jr.'s headshot was a weird one.". To which I laughed aloud. "Weird", huh? Would I expect anything less coming from Robert Downey Jr.? Then, the headshot. I will describe it best as possible. Robert Downey Jr. was sitting, his left leg crossing the right. Head tilted. Neck bent. Robert Downey Jr.'s  left arm was posed behind his head. The right arm? It was resting on his shoulders. And he had this cocky "Notice me!! Notice me!! I'm cute!!" expression written upon his face. Well. It was an unconventional "headshot", to say the least!! I read this Website's take on Robert Downey Jr.'s picture. In a pea coat over a dress shirt and tie, with James-Dean-meets-the-Bride-of-Frankenstein hair, posing like he's part of the ensemble in a modern dance troupe: this is how Robert Downey Jr. tried to impress casting directors in 1985. Vulture's got a gallery of old headshots taken by a photographer named Andrew Brucker who sought to elevate the form to new artistic levels. Amongst photos of young Will Arnett, Kerry Washington and Winona Ryder, this RDJ photo stands out as being the weirdest. It's as if he had it taken specifically to audition for the role of Inspector Gadget as directed by Tim Burton. And I laughed some more!! Until I read these words. What's the actual explanation for this photo? Occam's Razor says: drugs. This threw me!! It stirred my emotions in response. To which I wrote this. It was not "published" onto their comments section. "Drugs"?! Is that the best explanation you can come up with to describe this picture?! "Drugs"?! Really?! Really?! Robert Downey Jr. was always strange, an eccentric who never ever, ever, ever needed the "help" of any narcotic to bring it out. Which I personally love about him!! And although I do not much care for pictures of Robert Downey Jr. young, {Or "pre-sobriety"!!} this one is actually cute!! His beautiful brown eyes are clear. I have seen them very, very, very dark. I have seen them sad, lonely and desolate. I have seen them glare back at cameras in pure bad boy fashion. And, yes, I believe that I've seen them glazed over, as though he was high. I hate every single one. But compare this picture to any of him snapped in these amazing ten years of being clean, and you'll find several poses which are strikingly similar!! Why? Because he is an oddball!! Either love him, or hate him for it!! Apparently liking eccentrics is an "acquired taste". And if you throw crazy in the mix, which he always has been, it's even more so!! I say that Robert Downey Jr. was simply being himself when this picture was taken. And that is beautiful. Besides, narcotics always hindered his true identity. It occurred to me several hours later that I defended a young Robert Downey Jr., and I've never done this before!! Whoa. So that is what empathy does to me!! See. When I learned about Robert Downey Jr.'s past last Summer, God used him to teach me something quite valid. He used him to teach me empathy toward addicts. This never existed before. Never. I would hear about someone with a drinking or drug problem, and flatly think this. "Just get over it!!". But now. I can read some story about where Robert Downey Jr. came from during his addiction years, and feel for him. Because I get it somehow. He would, of course, humbly tell me not to waste my empathy on him. But I don't. It was a very good lesson to learn. Empathy. And I now employ it toward anybody else who struggles with addiction. I am completely blown away by the power of empathy!!