This is a newly acquired emotion for her. It started a few weeks ago at ECFE. We noticed she would start 'crying' whenever one of the other kids started crying or got upset. And, I won't lie, we thought it was kind of cute.
But now, it has moved on to a whole different level. If she hears anyone cry, sound upset or sniff, she cries. And it's no longer 'crying' it's crying. With real live human tears. And it's not only tears, but genuine concern for the person who is crying/hurt/upset. She clings to me with her real live human tears shining in her eyes and points at the poor soul who is upset. And then buries her head in my shoulder as if it were just too much to bear. And if things are really bad, she'll go to said upset person and cry with them.
And it kills me. It makes my heart physically hurt for her because her heart is hurting for someone else. She is too little to hurt that much. Can't we save the heart break until at least junior high?
I know, more than likely she isn't truly feeling that much empathy for someone else. It's more likely that she is responding to their emotions and tears. But still.
My tough cookie is really a big ol' softie on the inside.
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