When someone’s words or actions hurt, our first response may come quickly. Mercy’s story invites families to pause and consider another possibility: there may be hurt behind behavior that is difficult to understand.
That pause does not mean pretending that hurtful behavior is acceptable. Children deserve safety, clear boundaries, and the help of a trusted adult. Compassion can make room for those protections while also helping us see another person as more than their worst moment.
Families can explore the idea together with a few questions:
- What might Mercy be feeling in this moment?
- What else could be happening beneath the behavior we can see?
- How can we respond kindly while still asking for help and keeping safe boundaries?
The story’s invitation is not to know everything about another person. It is to stay open to what we cannot yet see, and to choose a response shaped by faith, care, and wisdom.
This reflection discusses themes of Mercy’s Eyes of Faith; it is not an excerpt from the book.
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