"..[empathy] It’s saying this,
“I’m trying to be a companion to you in your search and your exploration.
I want to know, am I with you?
Is this the way it seems to you?
Is this the thing you’re trying to express?
Is this the meaning it has for you?”
So in a sense I’m saying,
“I’m walking with you step by step, and I want to make sure I am with you.
Am I with you?”
So that’s a little bit of my understanding about empathy."
CARL ROGERS
CARL ROGERS SPEAKS on CHARACTERISTICS of EFFECTIVE COUNSELING 1985