I headed a project team at the job a couple of years ago. The project lasted two years and one of the ladies in my group was Bipolar. It took me a while to realize she was a very tender and sweet person underneath it all. Before working closely with her, I had thought for years that she was just a difficult person. As long as she followed her medication program she was great to work with.
This lady is a very hard worker. She's competent and trusted to complete assignments. She has to be, her demeanor is a liability for her. Still, her performance otherwise cries out for promotion.
I guess I look at this whole thing anew. There's a little light burning bright in there that was saddled with this terrible burden to carry through this physical world. It's difficult, if not impossible, to carry alone. Those of us within daily contact are also carrying a part of that burden. But, because we are fellow beings of the almighty, we have a responsibility toward one another.
I now cross paths with this lady two or three times each month. No matter her mental disposition at the time, there is still that little smile and personal contact that let's me know she knows that I understand her plight and how hard she is working to overcome it. It makes us both feel good.
Sometimes we don't appreciate the many many ways our spiritual beings reach out in this all to profane world. But when it happens there's magic and just a glimpse of what it must be like where the GOAT presides.