ldquo A thorn has entered your foot mdash that is why you weep at times at night rdquo wrote Catherine of Sienna in the fourteenth century She continued ldquo There are some in this world who can pull it out The skill that takes they have learned from God rdquo Catherine devoted her life to cultivating that ldquo skill rdquo and is still remembered today for her remarkable capacity for empathy and compassion for others in their pain nbsp That image of pain as a deeply embedded thorn that requires tenderness and skill to remove lingers with me It rsquo [... more]