New York Times Well: An Empathy Contest

Found on emilymcdowell.com

A big thank you to Anne for sending the link to this NYT Well article my way in which Emily McDowell, creator of The Empathy Cards, announces a contest to help her design a new card for her series that focuses on chronic illness. How cool is that?

The Empathy Cards line, described as “support for serious illness and loss,” includes cards that are insightful, relatable and, surprisingly, often funny. There’s a card that lists the five stage of grief, including “crying when you’re a little drunk.” Another quips, “If this is God’s plan, God is a terrible planner.” 

This week, Ms. McDowell is adding seven new cards to her empathy series. But instead of focusing on cancer, the new series focuses on people who have a chronic, potentially life-changing illness or are dealing with grief and loss. She wants help in deciding a new card, and is hosting a card contest with Well readers.  

“What cards do is hit on the emotional connections between people,” said Ms. McDowell. “There’s nothing more needed when someone has a chronic illness.”Continue reading here. 

The contest is facilitated by the Well blog. Here's the rules:

Submit your idea in the comments. Think about what you would want people to say to you during a tough illness, or think about comments from friends that touched your heart or made you laugh.  

The Well team will select our favorite submissions, and Ms. McDowell will create a new card with the best turn of phrase. Help us decide by recommending your favorites. You may choose more than one entry but you can’t vote for the same entry more than once.

You can read the contest's fine print here. So fire up those brain cells and get your creative juices flowing. I can't wait to see the voting choices.