"The Giver" by Lois Lowry (published 1993)

I read this, electronically, in full on a whim today. I haven't read this since some time in grade school and never saw the film (nor do I wish to). I am *so glad* I read it again. While there is plenty to discuss about this Newbery-Award winning children's book (first published in 1993) - now considered, rightfully, a classic - what I learned from the Lois Lowry's "The Giver" is this: that some people don't want to feel pain. Maybe some people refuse feel pain. Especially the pain of others. That pain, most importantly, includes that strong pull of sympathy and empathy that we, in shared humanity, bear for others to order *share* the burden; in order to help and in order to heal. While empathy and sympathy are subjective, especially when two or more people have gone through similar life experiences (such as going through war, or heartbreak, a divorce, et al), we must strive and we must reach towards understanding those different kinds of pain that we may not immediately feel a personal connection to. The lesson of the novel, for me, is this: the more we whole-heartedly try - and in doing so struggle - to accept and find that which is different from what we know - we become richer in a sense more profound than anything monetary. Like the Giver and like Jonas, we begin to hear more notes in the music, see more colors within the spectrum, feel more emotions across the board, and finally, we understand that there is something beyond us as individuals, for the greater good must not be afraid of pain, for pain is the key to unlocking the boundaries of compassion. Ultimately, this is what Jonas perfectly calls: depth.