… I wouldn’t be able to speak until I’d started the second cup. Nothing personal. I love our chats. Please don’t think I’m ignoring you. It’s just that the mental fog is thick today.
Oh, you’re feeling as bright as a button. I’m picturing an old biscuit tin that’s full of assorted shiny buttons tinkling and twinkling as I run my hand through them. A fond past memory now associated with an absurd level of tiredness!
Empathy is a tricky thing.
Some people just don’t have the knack of it. That’s OK. It’s not nastiness. Their brain just doesn’t have the wiring to make empathy work. Focus instead on the positives they bring to your life.
Some people overdo it. That’s a problem. They are so desperate to “meet” you at your emotional “home” that they completely misjudge the depth to which they must dive, and in the process drag you down to places you hadn’t visited, all with the well-intentioned purpose of lifting you up.
Sometimes, it is just enough to share a coffee.
Perhaps I learnt a middle way these last couple of weeks. Listen, and keep listening until you’ve worked out their end goal and where they are up to now. Then, hope you can come up with a sentence or two that will act as a bridge.
It is always their choice to cross, if they wish.
I’m picturing an old biscuit tin that’s full of assorted shiny buttons tinkling and twinkling as I run my hand through them. A smile stretches ever so slightly. Tiredness is not sadness.
Cherrie Zell 
What are your thoughts?