compassion—we notice and care for that person. We don’t shut him or her out. We cherish things that make us feel good and are valuable to us: jobs, approval, investments, cars, or sex. But we tend not to cherish people—even those closest to us. A magazine writer describes this scene: Last summer, on as lovely an evening as one can hope for in central Virginia, I was at my daughter’s lacrosse practice. Standing next to me was a father more intent on the cellphone conversation he was having (which